Brilliant Sins
by Avocado-Grenade
Summary: Kuroko Tetsuya has lived his whole life raised and trained as an exorcist and a demon summoner. Little did he know that things are about to change in his world as he encounter more powerful demons and realize that the creatures he's trying to exterminate may help him in eliminating an even greater threat and just maybe save the world in the process. Demons GoM x Summoner Kuroko.
1. Truth or Dare

_A/N_: First of all, I have no fucking clue on what I have just done, I haven't written since 7th grade for creative writing in English. So forgive me if I do make mistakes on grammar and spellings and all and please feel free to point them out to me, I am more than happy to receive constructive criticisms and comments of suggestions, I'll take everything in mind and promise to read everything that has been sent to me.  
Anyways this fic started out as a drabble for me inspired by these set of wonderful fanart of the Kiseki no sedai x Kuroko

Link: /member_ ?mode=medium&illust_id=43548010

Anyways I had fun while writing this and I hope that you will enjoy reading the story as much as I enjoy writing it.  
I don't own Kuroko no Basuke all credits belong to the respectful author, Fujimaki Tadatoshi Sensei, for creating the series.

**_Prologue – Do you dare to believe?_**

Do you believe in demons? Most people would've probably said no to that question, but the truth of the matter is, they do exist.

Yes, some could argue that they exist in a more metaphorical sense but that isn't what we're talking about here.

Demons literally exist within our society; they can be seen felt and heard if one had the ability and patience to look closer enough.

All you have to do is look around; they are everywhere, within the crowded streets and the inside the cosy town houses feeding off the lives of those who had been unfortunate enough to be tempted into their clutches.

Still not convinced? Well let's start from the basics, what is a demon exactly and how come they exist within us if practically 99% of the population are unaware of their existence. Here's the answer, it's because they live within a beauty so distracting that you cannot see behind the simple mask. Yes, the answer is simple, demons live within the personification of every human greed, wealth, and desires combined. They live within gemstones. In fact precious stones have been a demon's medium to visit our human world since times immemorial. Demons can live for a very long time; in fact one might be able to consider them as immortal as they do not need any nourishment in order to survive unlike us human beings.

Why would they visit us then? Well, the answer is also simple. They seek for entertainment and simply to indulge themselves with consuming the greed which they had nurtured inside our souls.

Ridiculous! You might say. Not really, guess what, ever heard of those cases where generations of siblings would repeatedly kill each other for that particular blue sapphire ring which had been the family heirloom for generations? Or that one where the national treasure, the Queen's Crown, had been stolen and then everyone within the heist had started stabbing and shooting at each other just so they can get the spoils for themselves? Oh, and don't forget the case where that child had burned her parents alive for their insurance money because they won't let her buy that one ruby necklace that she had wanted.

Yes, demons do exist, and they are feeding off and manipulating human energies for their own desires and enjoyment. The fun part is that their manipulation usually makes whatever sanity that a human brain had retained to fly straight out of the window and anything can happen when a human is overwhelmed and consumed by their desires and greed. Anything.

Fear not though, for we still have that 1% of the population that are still aware of what's going on with the demons and what not, and thank the gods that they are not staying silent about the elusive chaos within our world. And so this is the story of a young boy who is a part of that 1% of the society, who just also happened to be a demon hunter.

* * *

**_Chapter 1 – Truth or Dare_**

Night within the city was never a quiet and calm thing. The streets were bustling as people scurry around towards whatever destination they had in their mind. Whether it was going home towards their loved ones or simply out to enjoy the night with friends at a club.

It was Friday night as a young boy had started marching towards the back door of a prominent night club within the district. The boy had his face covered by a dark hoodie with gloved hands, baggy jeans and sneakers. He was looking like a typical teenager within the area trying to sneak into the nightclub and have fun, but he's not.

Kuroko Tetsuya is a 17 years old boy who is also a part of that 1% of the population who knows about demons. In fact, he's also a demon summoner who was on an assignment tasked by the ever esteemed Society of Demon Hunters. Why was he in a nightclub then, you might ask. Well the answer is also simple; he was completing an assignment which had been given to him.

He proceeded to enter through the slightly rusty back door and was immediately surrounded by the suffocating smell of smoke and booze. It was vile and disgusting, but then again his job had always required him to do the vile and disgusting things most people won't even consider of doing.

Kuroko had managed to keep his expression rather neutral as he weaved through the throngs of people within the nightclub, although if one would look closely at him you could see the slight wrinkle of his nose as it twitched with slight disgust under the smells that permeated from around him.

He managed to make his way past though, which is easier for him to do than most people since he has a major lack of presence which came in handy and convenient when doing his job at times like these.

He slipped through a door which had a clear sign displayed on the front as 'Staff Only' before proceeding down his tracks towards a set of stairs leading upwards within the narrow corridors. He was going purely by his instincts and his senses of feeling.

He stopped short in front of a large wooden double door at the end of the straight-line corridor. There was no one guarding in front of it and he found himself silently wondering whether this was a trap or not. It didn't matter for him though, as he slowly reached out towards the handle and opened the door with a silent creak.

Kuroko had looked around the dimly lit room, there was no one inside of it, it seems.

He quickly closed the door behind him and proceeded to do his task and start to observe the room he's in.

It was a grand spacious room with a large wooden mahogany desk and an equally impressive leather chair sitting at the centre of the room surrounded by walls of paintings and books, probably meant to be an office of some kind.

The wooden floors made a silent creak as Kuroko stepped deeper into the room while trying to sense his target, which he knew was very, very close.

Bingo, he thought as he spotted the thing he was looking for.

It was a shining statue of a golden figure standing at the centre of an enclosed glass case situated on the left side of the room along with the various paintings. But what catches Kuroko's attention is the item situated within the statue's hands, a large sparkling aquamarine gem.

Kuroko proceeded to walk towards the statue with caution as he attempted to remove the glass encasing. Everything was going as planned, that is, until he heard a gun click from somewhere behind him.

"Don't move!"

Ah, crap. Everything was going so smoothly too, he had thought with irritation as he proceeded to turn around slowly while putting both of his hands above his head. His expression was blank as he faced the man standing at the doorway.

The man was standing shakily with the gun on his hands. He was trembling either from fear or rage Kuroko didn't know, he doesn't really want to find out either.

"Get the fuck away from my treasure!"

Kuroko could see the madness already seething within the man's bloodshot eyes though, as he pursed his lips in silent contemplation on what his next actions should be.

The man was almost completely consumed by the demonic aura induced from within that gem and Kuroko knew then that this isn't going to be an easy walk in the field anymore.

He silently walked away from the encasing and towards the crazed man as he attempted to silently and stealthily fiddle with the silver bracelet on his wrists hidden beneath his hoodie jacket. One wrong move and everything could be fatal, both for him and the man pointing the gun at him.

"Stop! Don't move I say! Just stay there! I'll make sure you get what you deserve thief!" Kuroko proceeded to stop when the words were uttered at him.

He was about a foot away from the man when he stopped moving. It was enough distance for him to use his misdirection and immobilize the less than sane man.

He moved quickly and stealthily as he cut through the distance within them, the man barely registering the shock in his mind before his arms was twisted towards his back, the gun already dropped from his shaky grasps. Kuroko then pinned his body, face pressing against the walls, before he got a thin and sturdy rope out for cases like these and proceeded to tie both of the man's hands together.

What he didn't consider was, the fact that the gem would start to glow with an ominous light and made the man in his arms started to struggle with inhuman strength as he broke free from Kuroko's hold.

Dammit, he thought in exasperation, he really didn't want to have to use this method but now he guessed he needs to in order to get out of this with his life intact. He proceeded to take a couple of steps back from the enraged man whose body has fallen down to the ground as it starts to slowly overflow with suffocating demonic aura. His sanity was, without questioning, beyond gone as loud inhumane shrieks filled the room during the process of the demon slowly taking over and possessing the body.

Kuroko was rather calm though, as he slowly reached out his left arm and pulled back the sleeves covering it to reveal a silver bangle with a curious and intricate design. The bangle has five empty slots covering its entire length around his wrists, except for one, which has already been filled with a single gem, a brilliant cut yellow topaz.

Kuroko proceeded to recite the words which he already knew from the back of his head as the fallen man starts to slowly stand up, his face had morphed into something monstrous as he gazed towards Kuroko with slitted demonic eyes and pointed teeth set in a menacing grin directed towards him.

"I call upon thee, he of the netherworld and spawn of the Devil, heed my call and appear upon my words, Mimos!" He finished his enchantment as a blinding light then surrounds the room, making Kuroko shut his eyes tightly to shield himself before he opened them again and there was a man standing in his full glory in front of him.

The man was tall with shimmering blond hair and ethereally handsome features drawn into a huge smile on his face as he bounded towards Kuroko and proceeds to glomp him into a tight embrace.

"Kuroko-cchi I missed you~, why didn't you call me sooner?" The man was pouting and looking at Kuroko with doe-puppy eyes.

Kuroko sighed, this is precisely why he avoided on taking this course of action, he didn't feel like dealing with the smothering acts his demon familiar, Kise Ryouta, loved to shower him with every time they spend a moment together.

"Kise-kun, I can't breathe could you please let go of me? Besides, we got a problem to deal with first." Kuroko's gaze turned towards the man who is now standing fully on his two feet and looking at them both with a hungry blood-lust gaze.

Kise had followed his gaze towards the man and sighed before he moved his hands away, much to Kuroko's relief, and proceeds to ruffle his own hair in annoyance.

"Haaah, dammit, why is there always a disturbance every time we get to see each other."

The possessed man had charged towards Kuroko with a blinding speed, however, Kise was faster as he stopped the man in his tracks with a punch to his gut and proceeds to throw a flying kick aimed at his head. The man's head slammed against the walls hardly and a loud sickening squelch had sounded as the man's skull smashed and his brain splattered against the pure white walls.

Kise sighed as he looked at his shoes, now stained with blood and bits of flesh, with disdain marring his face as he tried to wipe the soles clean on the burgundy carpeted floor.

"Aaaah~ and these are my newest pair too. Oh, well can't help it." He then changed his expression again with a large smile plastered on his face instead as he looked towards the silent Kuroko who had proceeded to walk towards the glass case containing his actual target.

"You didn't need to take it that far, Kise-kun. Now they're going to make big news out of this case." Kuroko had looked towards Kise with slight disapproval in his gaze as he walked past the blond and towards his goal.

"Aww, but I was doing it for you Kuroko-cchi! After all, he was already beyond the point of returning to being human. It won't do to have the newspapers reporting and start to investigate his… abnormal features now would it?" His voice had dropped an octave lower as he muttered the last sentence with an unusually wicked look on his face before reverting it back towards his usual grin.

Kuroko had only managed to shake his head slightly before he sighed and proceeds to do his task of removing the glass case and the gem while Kise is watching him happily from the side.

Now that the gem is secure in Kuroko's custody, and won't cause anyone any more trouble, he had sighed in relief as a major part of his assignment was now complete. Now he just has to deal with the job of delivering the gem to be contained by the Society and get his bounty for the job.

Kuroko was about to walk out of the door with Kise following on his trail before the latter had stopped him, his arms out wide between Kuroko and the door. Kuroko looked up in silent enquiry as to the other's actions before Kise's bright amber eyes seemed to glow as he looked beyond the door.

"There's people coming, and they're heading this way."

Well, Kuroko's day couldn't get any worse, he had just killed a man in his mission, and now more are coming up and he has to deal with all of them.

He sighed, all he wanted to do was to go complete this assignment and then buy Maji's vanilla milkshake before he goes home to his apartment and retire for the night.

Kise chuckled at his summoner's obvious weariness over their entire situation. He then proceeds to lift Kuroko up in a bridal style carry as he started walking towards the window on the opposite end of the room instead. Kuroko hadn't struggled or anything but he was obviously confused and slightly annoyed at his familiar's actions as he voiced his thoughts out towards him.

"Kise-kun, what are you doing?" Kise smiled brightly at Kuroko's question before he proceeded to kick the windows open and climbed towards the railings.

"I'm just helping us escape from here. You don't want to deal with the rest of them don't you? So let's take it easy and leave everything to me instead." He had chirped happily as he proceeded to jump from the window railing bounding towards roof after roof with inhumane speed.

Kuroko could blink his eyes at his familiar's thoughtful act before he gave a small smile in gratitude.

"Thank you Kise-kun, you could be unusually thoughtful sometimes." Kise pouted in return before voicing his protests at the remark.

"That's mean Kuroko-cchi! I'm always very thoughtful!" Kuroko only gave a silent chuckle at the other's loud objections as they went on their way.

By the time the people had reached the room both of them were already long gone. They had disappeared into the darkness of the night.

* * *

Kuroko went into the Society's Headquarters the very next morning after the fiasco that was his job last night. He walked with silent anticipation and dread as he approached closer towards his office.

He proceeds to open the door towards his department unit's office and entered silently. Despite what people may think the office looks just like any other they've ever seen. Plenty of desks with littered with cups of coffee and mountains of paperwork scattered everywhere. It was a typical office for typical kinds of workers, except that their job isn't so typical.

Kuroko had silently walked towards his desk which was situated next to a certain redhead who was busy typing furiously on his computer with a half downed cup of coffee beside of him. It seemed like the redhead had pulled an all-nighter towards writing all of his postponed reports.

The redhead hadn't noticed him as he walked in and Kuroko had to resist the twitch at the corners of his mouth before he silently stood next to the red head and proceeded to greet him with a monotone voice.

"Good morning Kagami-kun." The redhead had jolted quite violently before he turned to look with wide eyes filled with shock and anger at being caught off-guard.

"What the f-… Jesus Kuroko! I told you so many fucking times not to do that shit. I swear to God I'm going to die of heart failure one of these days." He had muttered before palming his face and leaning back against his seat in exasperation. Kuroko felt a little bit bad for scaring him like that but his reactions are always worth the watch.

"I'm very sorry Kagami-kun, I'll promise to try and not to do that again." Kagami had given him a dirty look at his response; they both know that this isn't going to be the last time for it to happen. Kuroko was still basking in his silent amusement as he proceeded to sit at his own desk next to the redhead's.

Kagami had gone back to furiously typing his report while Kuroko was starting up his own monitor in order to start his own report for yesterday's case. By the time Kuroko had settled well into his work the rest of the office had started to pile in one after another through the door, every one of them was holding a plastic cup of take-away coffee in their hands.

"Good morning Izuki-kun, Mitobe-kun, Tsuchida-kun, and Koganei-kun." Each one of them had looked at Kuroko with mild surprise before proceeding to reply their own greetings in return.

Their department didn't have a lot of people in it but they had known each other for quite a while now and are quite familiar with one another. While the rest of the people had filed in to their own desks Izuki had approached Kuroko with his cup of coffee in one hand while waving a newspaper in the other hand, before leaning in to the other's desk.

"So I saw the newspaper today, damn Hyuuga is going to be blow a hyuuge fuse." Kuroko had ignored the other's usual antics of making puns out of his words and instead chose to stay silent at the remark. Kagami had looked up from his furious typing to stare at both Izuki and Kuroko back and forth while voicing out his curiosity.

"Why, what happened?" He didn't have to wait long for the answer to come though as a furious Hyuuga had stormed into the office while slamming the doors open.

"Is Kuroko here yet?!" Everyone had simultaneously turned their heads towards the silent Kuroko before he softly sighed in resignation and rise up from his seat.

Hyuuga had noticed his unusual teal coloured hair and immediately went storming towards his private captain's quarters just beyond the larger office while making eye contact and pointing his fingers towards Kuroko as he passes him.

"You. To my office. Now." And then he was gone and Kuroko had followed him closely into his private quarters before closing the door behind him silently with a click. Hyuuga had went to sit behind his desk and gestured for Kuroko to sit down in one of the two guest chairs in front of his desk. Kuroko proceeded to do as he was silently told before Hyuuga then shot him the lingering question.

"So what the hell happened yesterday? Mind explaining why there's a dead body, not to mention, with his skull and brains bashed to smithereens against the walls."

Kuroko steeled himself as he tried to choose his words carefully in order to avoid angering his captain further before explaining in his usual monotone.

"I was just in the process of procuring the gem when I hadn't noticed the man who had come in. He had a gun pointed at me and while I was trying to contain the situation he had then started to undergo the process of the 'change' which had given him demonic powers, and I had realized then that the situation would be too much for me to handle alone. So I had called my familiar who had, in the process of defending my life, killed him with a single kick to his head. I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience this had caused towards everyone within the organization and I am currently of writing an apology letter followed by an official report on what happened during yesterday's mission of the 'Eye of the Mermaid' gem containment. It will be finished before this afternoon." Kuroko had stayed silent again after his long explanation on his last night's mission.

Hyuuga proceeds to sigh in annoyance and resignation at his underling's blank face. He was always too polite for him to stay mad at the other, and so, he then continued his lecture in a less strict tone.

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure Kiyoshi and Riko is probably taking care of it right now as we speak." The mention of the familiar names had Kuroko look up towards his captain's face as he registered the words within his mind.

Kiyoshi Teppei was one the founders of their Society of Demon Hunters and he had a very easy-going disposition and always had a way to get people to go by his pace and ultimately do whatever he wants. Aida Riko was their lawyer who takes care of the official and legal matters of their business and she's really good at her job given that none of them had been jailed for murder from various cases like Kuroko's yet.

"I guess, I just hadn't really expected for this type of blunder and flashy stuff to happen within your cases, I'd always pegged for Kagami to do these kinds of things." Kuroko can't help the small smile from forming on his face at the captain's words.

Kagami Taiga is Kuroko's close friend and the star of their department, a genius demon summoner who had a lot of potential and stamina to back his ridiculously high spiritual powers. With great power though comes great belligerence and Kagami had a lot of it, enough for him to make the cases he handled appear within the headlines at least once a week.

Hyuuga then gave one final sigh before he dismissed Kuroko with a wave of his hand.

"Make sure that report is ready on my desk before lunch, compensation for the mission has been transferred into your account. Good work, just try to solve the next case in a more _discreet_ way. We don't need any more troublesome members getting into the spotlight." Hyuuga had muttered the last sentence in reference to the certain redhead they both knew.

Kuroko had nodded before standing up to bow towards his senior and proceeding to walk out of the door. As soon as the door opened, Kagami had turned his head around and gave Kuroko a large knowing grin.

"Ooh, I heard what you did, you're in for some serious deep shit right there." He had giggled like a child who had found his amusement while Kuroko kept his expression blank as he was about to close the door behind him when Hyuuga's booming voice rang out through the room from behind the door.

"Kagami Taiga! In my office, now!" Kagami's face fell as everyone else was trying to silently hold back their laughter over the ironic situation.

Kuroko couldn't hide his amusement as he, on the way towards his desk, passed by a pale faced Kagami who had groaned as he went into the captain's office with resignation before the door closes behind him successfully muffling out the captain's angry voices from within.

Kuroko then went on with his report in silence with the occasional smile ghosting over his lips when he heard the loud angry muffles of his captain's lecture leaking out from behind the closed door, and after about half an hour later Kagami then proceeded to walk out from the captain's office looking ten times more worn out than before.

Kuroko kept on with the typing of his report as Kagami walked over and sat down on the chair next to him before Kuroko then stopped his typing just to look at Kagami with the ghost of a smile on his face while he kept staring towards the other with expressionless eyes that hides a certain amusement beneath them.

"Shut up." Kagami had glared towards the other's general direction without really meeting the sky blue eyes that were staring at him in obvious laughter.

Kuroko proceeded to chuckle lightly before deciding to ask the other out towards their usual lunch spot like they always do.

"Let's go to Maji's for lunch, I am quite in the mood for a vanilla milkshake at the moment."

"You're always in the mood for a vanilla milkshake." Kagami had muttered under his breath but he didn't object to the idea of lunch though. He was starving and he needed all of his energy to finish the rest of his pile of abandoned reports.

And so they went on with their paperwork until lunch time approaches before they then started to head out together towards the Maji Burger just across the road.


	2. Of Dreams and Reality

**_Chapter 2 – of Dreams and Reality_**

Kuroko woke up with a start.

He was sweating profusely while his body and soul was shaken to the core.

He remembers vividly of the images from his memories, which he thought he'd managed to have long since forgotten, that had shown itself upon him within his sleep.

He was inhaling and exhaling deep large breaths if only just to calm his beating heart down to a considerably normal level.

He was not going to get any more sleep for that day, he thought as he reached out towards his clock on the bedside table as he read the digital display it provided.

6:34 a.m.

Kuroko gave a short sigh as he put the clock back towards its original place. He looked around his bedroom in silent contemplation before deciding on getting up from his bed and heading out towards the lounge area.

His apartment was small, but then again he couldn't afford to rent a larger place even if he had wanted to, which he didn't, his apartment was cosy and warm enough for him to live in by himself. The apartment consists of one bedroom, one bathroom, a kitchen adjoining towards the living room and a small balcony for him to hang his laundry dry.

It was similar to a typical college student apartment and not to mention it was situated in one of the smaller residential districts where things are more peaceful than it is in the city area.

He strolled into the kitchen leisurely while opening one of the cardboard boxes which he had taken from one of the kitchen drawers. He proceeded to prepare the food, and as he was filling a blue bowl up, a pitter patter of small feet could be heard coming towards him with hurried eagerness.

Kuroko looked down towards his feet where a puppy bearing a striking resemblance to him is sitting on the floor with much eagerness and anticipation colouring his sky blue eyes. Kuroko smiled at the sight of his Alaskan malamute puppy which he had chosen to adopt barely a year ago with the help of a very frightened and loud Kagami.

"Good morning Nigou, I'll have your food ready in just a sec, wait a bit would you?" Kuroko had gotten back towards his task of providing the food for his dog while the malamute puppy replied back with a loud 'arf!'.

Kuroko had given Nigou his deserved meal while proceeding to make his own breakfast next.

He silently looked over the fridge finding barely any necessary ingredients for him to work with, and it's not like he's a great cook either, he could only make simple dishes like boiled eggs anyways.

He sighed, he should've taken Kagami's offer to stay over at his place yesterday since they both had the day off today, not only the other's place is much bigger than his, the red head just so happened to be an amazing cook himself. Kuroko never left the other's place without having stuffed himself full with food that might as well be a gourmet five-star restaurant dish.

It always pleases the other when Kuroko would eat his dishes, he had always been complaining about Kuroko's small stamina and appetite which he himself couldn't even do anything about.

Sometimes Kagami can be so overprotective of him and treated him more like a little brother rather than a close friend even though Kuroko was only half a year younger than the other. He hadn't minded it though, sometimes he lets himself indulge in the way Kagami spoils him. It reminded him of his family which were already long gone.

He decided to settle for having cereal instead, since there was nothing else he could make with the lack of ingredients thereof. He needed to go grocery shopping, and today might just as well be it since he does have the day off after all.

Kuroko left his apartment after washing up the dishes and getting changed into one of his casual attires which consists of a plain white T-shirt with a dark blue jacket and jeans followed by sneakers. Yeah, he doesn't have much of an option when it comes to his attire, not like he minded it anyways, much to his familiar, Kise's, chagrin.

He decided to go grocery shopping first before taking Nigou out on his very much deserved walk for the day later in the afternoon.

On his way towards the supermarket, his path had led him down to walk by the library which had made him stop at his steps and stare at the old but grand building in contemplation.

He had always come here to read during his off days and spare time which he doesn't have a lot of lately what with him being swamped with work since the unusual rise of demonic interference and cases. He just could never get a break.

He decided to enter the library first, just so he could quickly check out and maybe borrow a couple of books to read for his leisure during his evening later. Besides, he might as well greet one of his friends that worked at the library while he was at it.

He proceeded to climb the steps leading up towards the entrance of the great library and entered the grand halls of the place. He had expected for the library to be filled with more people than usual since it's the weekend after all, but he did not expect for the throngs of people who seemed to be more than overfilling the place.

He widened his eyes in slight surprise and shock at the situation before he proceeded to weave and dodge past the bodies in slight confusion as he approached the front desk with stealth.

Kuroko had found who he was looking for; the raven haired man was trying and failing on keeping the people in line as they seemed to be dying to catch a glimpse at something beyond them.

He had known the librarian, Takao Kazunari, since he had moved into the area a couple of years back. They have been friends for quite some time now while sharing similar interests in books and exchanging opinions from the old time classics to the newest releases and best sellers.

Takao had noticed him approaching from the distance and had seemed to be somewhat relieved at his appearance before he then walked towards the other with fast steps. The raven head had never failed to miss the teal head even with his absurd lack of presence in the midst of all the others. Kuroko could've sworn that the guy have eyes on the back of his head with his ability to see even when he had his head turned the other way around.

"Kuroko! Long time no see! Where have you been man?" Kuroko gave a silent nod in acknowledgement of the other before he replied with his own greetings.

"Hello Takao-kun, I'm sorry for not visiting sooner, work has been quite hectic for me as of late. I see that you're especially busy today." Kuroko had gestured his eyes towards the mass of people still eager on lining up to catch a glimpse of something.

Takao had sighed in exasperation at the mention of the chaos that they're currently being swept in the midst of and proceeded to exclaim his frustrations out at the other.

"Yeah, it's been like this every day since this new exhibition had been displayed. I mean, this isn't like any of the other exhibitions or book signings that we've ever had before, it was never this hectic, this is totally insane dude! I can't even walk past them just to do the book returns and all that." Takao had proceeded to ruffle his own hair with clear annoyance and Kuroko had then noticed the unusually pale pallor the other is sporting.

Kuroko took a step closer towards the raven head with a slight frown on his face before he then proceeded to voice his thoughts out.

"Takao-kun, have you been getting enough rest lately? Your skin is unusually pale and you're looking more tired than usual." Takao gave a slight fragile smile in return before he put his arms around Kuroko's shoulders in a playful manner.

"Aww, sorry for worrying you Kuroko!" He gave a cheeky grin before proceeding in a more serious manner. "It's ok, I just didn't get enough sleep lately, plus trying to keep this whole mess contained every day is not easy I tell you." Kuroko gave a faint smile at the other's remark before he then turned towards the still squabbling crowd as they try to look and approach closer to the exhibition in question.

Kuroko was about to ask what was being exhibited to cause the hordes of people in such a chaos when a loud scream broke out from between the crowds of people as they suddenly backed out, as if to make room for something that was happening in the middle of it.

Both Takao and Kuroko had immediately turned their heads and ran towards the source of the sound while struggling to get through the rest of the crowd. What they saw was a bloody scene of a fist fight.

A man was lying down on the ground while his face was beaten senseless by another enraged man. His face had already become too bloodied to be recognizable and even so the larger man kept sitting on him and pounding his fists against the already deformed face as the other's unconscious body lie still on the ground.

Takao had widened his eyes in shock and was about approach and stop the man from beating the other before it becomes fatal when Kuroko shot out his hand and looked at Takao with a serious gaze.

"Takao-kun, please call for the police and an ambulance first, the man on the ground will need it, meanwhile I'll try and stop him while you do that." Takao was about to protest at the idea when Kuroko had already left and approached the man before Takao could say anything in retaliation.

Takao had cursed loudly before he decided to turn around and ran towards the front desk to immediately call the police and an ambulance. He'll make sure to file a complaint to the city council later about the need to hire an actual security staff for the public library, because damn, CCTV's won't help to contain a fist fight.

Meanwhile Kuroko had approached the man from behind and immediately pulled him away from the beaten man before he then proceeded to move and put his arms in front of the enraged man in a calming manner.

"Listen to me, you need to calm down and think about what you're doing. Fighting in a public place like this won't do you any good." A lot of people would probably think of Kuroko as crazy right now but this method always works when he's trying to break a fight up between Kagami and some drunks.

The man seemed to regain his senses for a while, although he still appeared rather furious when he yelled back at Kuroko.

"That fucking bastard was trying to get in my way of looking at the Book! I'll fucking beat him up until he's dead!" The man had roared before he charged past Kuroko and back towards the man on the floor. Takao had come back though and he immediately went to help Kuroko in holding back the large man with all their might.

"Sir, I need you to calm down, please. This is a public library and is no place for such fights." Takao had proceeded to try and calm the man down along with Kuroko who had then sensed something weird from the man he's currently holding down.

It was faint, but he definitely felt it, the vibe the man gives was somehow almost demonic in nature. He's not even close to being consumed by it, but it had definitely influenced and fuelled towards his aggressive behaviour. Kuroko now had new concerns to worry about as he silently thought of the source and the cause of the whole mess towards himself.

The ambulance and the police had arrived minutes after while they took control and custody of the situation from a relieved Takao. The rest of the patrons had then been cleared out by the police and some were taken in for witness and investigation purposes. The situation hadn't become fatal although the injuries the other man had sustained were quite serious.

After the police had finished questioning both Takao and Kuroko, they had then proceeded to clear out of the area while leaving no important evidence behind.

Takao sighed as he closed his eyes and slumped on one of the chairs the library had. The day was just too much for him to handle and he was feeling so damn sick and tired of it all.

Kuroko had noticed his friend's fatigue and weariness and had proceeded to buy his favourite sports drink from the nearby vending machine before approaching the sitting Takao.

"Here you go." Kuroko had muttered and Takao then opened his eyes slowly before he took the drink from Kuroko with a small grateful smile.

"Thanks, man." Kuroko had only nodded in return before he went to sit down next to the raven head. He felt bad for his friend but he needs to confirm something just so he can be sure of his deductions.

"Takao-kun, I apologize for asking this question, but that man just now… Do you know how long has he been going to the library for?" Takao gulped his drink down before looking at Kuroko with a smile on his face before replying.

"Oh, stop being so polite and worry too much, anyways, that man… If I recall correctly he's never been here until the day the exhibit came in. I've seen him every day since then from morning until closing hours, and most of the time he won't leave until I actually told him it was time for the closing. This whole situation is insane, I mean I don't get why people would flock all the way here just to see a thick worn out book from the 16th century written in a dead language that no one can actually read." Kuroko had perked his ears up at the mention of the mysterious book.

He then proceeded to look towards Takao while voicing out his intentions.

"May I see the book in question? I am slightly curious as well as to why people would fight over it." Takao gave a 'go ahead' wave with his hand while he continued to lounge and finish the rest of his drink. Kuroko then slide up from his seat and walked towards the now empty hall ways before he approached the glass case with the object in question within it.

Kuroko stared at the open book while circling around and analysing it from behind the glass case it's perched on. Takao was right, it may be slightly unique and antique but there's no reason as to why so many people would want to see it so eagerly and even going as far as fighting to the death over it.

He then closed his eyes, as he tried to use his spiritual senses to detect anything unusual from the book in question. At first he felt nothing, so he waited a while longer while trying to sense for any irregularity, however when he opened his eyes again he still felt the same thing. Nothing unusual was emanating from the worn out book.

Kuroko proceeded to stare one last time at the exhibit before he then sighed and turned around to walk back towards Takao while wondering if what he sensed earlier was just a fluke.

That is when he felt it.

A surge of demonic energy unlike anything he has ever sensed before, coming from behind him, as if it was trying to reach out towards his soul and see whether he had any cracks to exploit and take advantage of.

Kuroko whipped his head around with a soft gasp as he quickly took a couple steps back vigilantly while his hands went towards his hidden silver bracelet in reflex.

There was nothing behind him though, and by the time he had regained his composure enough to look around, the dreadful feeling has already dissipated into thin air.

Kuroko didn't move for a long time, he just stood there while scrutinizing the exhibit with the utmost caution he could manage. There was no mistake, there is a demon residing somewhere inside that book, and it was strong, probably as strong as his own and only familiar. And Kise is definitely no joke himself.

He will need to take drastic measures in order to contain the situation at hand, but not now, not while there's still Takao there with him. No, he needs to do this alone, swiftly and silently, before the situation got out of hand and cause any victims or fatalities.

It has to be soon, really soon, he thought with silent dread as he imagined Takao's pale face and sickly pallor. He doesn't want to lose any of his friends. No, he really doesn't want to lose anyone else important to him.

It has to be tonight, he thought, as he started to formulate a plan in the back of his head.

"Oooiii! Kurokoooo! Are you done yet?" Kuroko's head turned towards the sound, there was Takao waving at him from behind the hallways. Kuroko gave him a soft smile of assurance while he nodded his head so that the other can see.

"Yeah, I'm done looking." Kuroko replied as he slowly jogged towards the other who was looking slightly better by the minute. Takao gave him a grin as he then started to talk in his usual cheerful manner.

"Let's go grab some lunch! I'm starving after all this mess. Man, that dude was damn strong though! I almost thought I was gonna fly across the room when he rammed into me! Hahaha!"

Kuroko gave a silent smile as he went with Takao who proceeded to lock the library down early for the day.

There wasn't anything they could do about it, after all the library still needs to be cleaned up of the blood and mess on the carpet, and the police still needed to take 'more evidence' as they had put it. Besides, Takao had done more than enough of his share of the work for that day.

And so, Kuroko had walked with Takao out of the library while subtly keeping a close watch at the other as they're headed towards their lunch destination.

* * *

It was late afternoon by the time Kuroko had said goodbye to Takao as they split ways after they had finished their lunch, the latter had promised him that he'll go home and get some rest for the day to which Kuroko had nodded with relief.

Kuroko wanted to walk the other towards the station just to make sure Takao was okay, but the raven head had insisted that Kuroko should get on with his day instead and that he'll be fine. And so Kuroko hold on to his words and proceeded to continue with his day.

He has a lot to be done and he needs to do it fast, he thought, as he considered of the new task that he has assigned towards himself for that night. He promptly bought his groceries before he headed back towards his home to be greeted by the sight of his overly eager puppy.

"Hey Nigou, I'll take you for your walk as soon as I'm finished with this." Nigou only gave an enthusiastic 'arf!' in return to his owner's words.

Kuroko proceeded to tidy up his groceries before he then grabbed and prepared Nigou's leash for him to take on the walk.

He then went straight for his home phone before dialling a well-known number from the back of his head. There were a couple of rings before the other side had managed picked up and proceeded to reply with a hoarse voice.

"Yo, what's up?" It seems that Kuroko had just managed to wake Kagami up from his sleep.

Kuroko proceeded to ask the lingering question towards the other without pausing at all.

"Kagami-kun, could I please borrow your gun?"

On the other end of the line, Kagami had choked himself on his own spit.

* * *

A/N: Thank you so much for your reviews, favorites, and subscription guys, it really means a lot to me to know that a lot of people are looking forward to read my story and it's continuation.

On another note though I had found out from the last chapter that you cannot link art in ffn (lol really) so I'm just gonna repost the link of the beautiful art that had inspired this story down the bottom (again) while putting spaces on it so you guys can actually see what I was talking about.

Link: www . pixiv member_ ?mode=medium&illust_id=43548010

(just remove the spaces from the beginning)

Thank you again for reading this creation of mine and I hope you'll continue looking forward for the next chapters to come, ciao! Back to writing for me ;D


	3. An Unusual Disturbance

**_Chapter 3 – An Unusual Disturbance_**

"Seriously though, what the hell are you planning to do Kuroko?" Kagami had muttered towards the other while walking with his steps in sync to the teal head's own.

They had met up on Kuroko's walk with Nigou and Kagami had decided to follow them back towards Kuroko's apartment to further inquire about the other's outrageous request.

"I'll tell you once we get back Kagami-kun, even though I'd much rather prefer if you'd just lend me your gun instead of coming all the way back with me." Kuroko had spoken towards the other with a flat tone that rather shows his slight annoyance at his inability to shake the other off his tail.

Kagami proceeded to scowl at the teal head's words before he retaliated with his own.

"Yeah, says the one who wants to borrow _my_ gun when he had failed his firearms license test." Kuroko gave a slight frown at the other's words before he smoothed back his expression into its neutral state.

Kagami was right though; Kuroko had failed his firearms shooting test and hadn't been able to obtain his license to shoot a gun for demon hunting purposes while reversely Kagami had done atrociously at his applied summoning theoretical exam.

In other words, both had something that the other can't do and taking that fact into consideration, Kuroko had allowed Kagami to come with him towards his own self-proclaimed mission, albeit reluctantly.

Besides, if what he felt earlier was a tell-tale sign, he's going to need all the help he can get to subdue the demon within that book.

They had reached Kuroko's apartment by mid-evening and Kagami had proceeded to walk inside to sit on the apartment's lounge area while Kuroko untied Nigou from his leash and let him run inside the apartment freely.

Kuroko then went to the kitchen to prepare them both some tea for while they sit and discuss the plan that Kuroko had in mind.

By the time Kuroko had managed to prepare and bring a tray of tea and some snacks towards the living room, Kagami was sitting frozen in silent fear while locking gazes with the malamute puppy sitting just beside his seat on the two-seater sofa. Not only had Nigou resembled Kuroko in his appearance, it seems that they also share the same trait of whimsical delight in making fun of the redhead, much to latter's chagrin and annoyance.

Kagami had looked up towards the approaching teal head in a silent plea while Kuroko can't resist the urge to chuckle at the sight before he then told Nigou to go play somewhere else. The puppy had obeyed and went towards the direction of Kuroko's bedroom instead, leaving them both free to discuss the matter at hand.

The redhead had sighed in relief before he proceeded to take the proffered cup of tea from the tray as he silently looked up at Kuroko and shot him the question that he had already asked earlier.

"So? Are you gonna explain to me why on earth would you need a gun for?" Kuroko had managed to sit down on the one-seater couch adjacent to the redhead before he proceeded to reply with his answer.

"I am going to break in and exterminate a demon, Kagami-kun." This had made Kagami look up from his drink with raised brows while he then asked another question in succession to the first one.

"And why would you need to exterminate a demon on your day off? You can just do your mission tomorrow when we actually have work instead, besides shouldn't Hyuuga be notified on this first?" Kuroko had only stared with his neutral gaze set towards Kagami before replying further.

"I cannot notify the Society of this mission. I haven't actually located the source of the demonic infestation yet, although I have a fairly good idea on where it is." Kagami had almost choked on his tea before he set the cup down in favour of giving Kuroko a disbelieving look.

"Wait, wait, so you're telling me that you want to exterminate a demon when you haven't even found the vessel stone or gem yet?" Kuroko had nodded in silence before he proceeded to speak further of his founding.

"It's a gem Kagami-kun, I'm sure of it, and no I haven't managed to pinpoint the exact location yet, but I can assure you that the demon is inside of that book."

Oh God, did he just hear all that right? Kagami had thought with utter disbelief and shock marring his face.

"Okay, hold on just a second; let me repeat this so I can make sure that my hearing is perfectly functional. You, want to exterminate a demon, using my gun, without knowing exactly where the vessel stone or gem is, while it's supposed to be located inside a book? Seriously Kuroko?"

Kuroko had expected for Kagami's shocked response, and so, he wasn't in the least bit surprised to see the other's astonishment and dumbfound reaction at the whole situation.

"I can assure you that your hearing is perfectly fine Kagami-kun. Yes, that is what I said and I know it sounds less than credible but there's already been a case earlier this morning, while I was visiting the library."

Okay, this is not what Kagami had expected, not at all, this is just downright and utterly ridiculous, he thought as he voiced out his utter discontent at the whole retarded situation.

"Oh what the fuck, we're breaking into a _public library_? This is crazy, _you're_ crazy." The redhead had muttered while throwing his hands up with total exasperation at the ridiculousness of it all.

Kuroko sighed before he then took a deep breath and turned to stare at Kagami with an intense gaze that had surfaced and showed his deep emotions more than he can ever voice out.

"Kagami-kun, please listen to me, there are lives at stake here, our job entails us to ensure the safety of others first and take precautionary measures when it is necessary. I would not have asked for your assistance if not for the urgent need to do so. We need to do this mission tonight before any more lives are put in danger."

Kagami had looked into Kuroko's earnest gaze for a moment before he finally closed his eyes and sighed in resignation.

There was nothing else he could do when Kuroko had that determined gaze on his eyes. Nothing can stop the other from doing what he wants now, and Kagami had no choice but to believe in the other's words and insistence about the dire situation they're about to face.

He was about to voice his thoughts and agreement out loud, when suddenly there's a blast of light that had shocked and made both Kagami and Kuroko shield their eyes with surprise.

When the light had faded away, a man had stood in its place while he sits by Kuroko's side at the sofa's armrest before taking the other cup of tea which Kuroko hadn't touched from the tray it's perched on.

Kise Ryouta proceeded to gulp the drink down before he sighed with content and proceeded to give them both a big bright smile.

"Kuroko-cchi is right Kagami-cchi~! There's a demon residing inside that book and it's rapidly gaining power as we speak right now." Kise had decided to so cheerfully reveal the fact towards the two shocked men with his typical singsong voice.

Kuroko had proceeded to blink rapidly before staring at his familiar with mild annoyance before chiding him.

"Kise-kun, could you please not appear unannounced, and please sit properly on the sofa."

"Aww, you want me to cuddle with you? Okay, I can totally do that!" Kise said before he then moved from his position on the armrest to scoot closer and sit next to the teal head, while putting his one of his arms around Kuroko, on the couch that was meant to be for _one_ person only.

How had he managed to come to this conclusion Kuroko didn't know.

Kuroko sighed with irritation at the other's uncalled intimate gesture, before he choose to ignore it in favour of the redhead's answer while he turned to look towards Kagami in attempt on continuing their interrupted conversation.

"Kagami-kun, will you come with me to the library?"

Kagami was honestly still shocked to silence at Kise's sudden appearance. It was unheard of for demon familiars to appear by themselves without being summoned.

He knew, from the moment that Kuroko had brought Kise in as his familiar half a year ago and had registered him to the Society, that the blonde was very strong; however he didn't realize that the blonde was able to summon himself to his master's side.

Just how strong is Kise Ryouta? He had wondered towards himself then, as he silently contemplated the question within his mind.

He proceeded to look up towards the summoner and familiar pair though, before he replied his already set answer.

"I'll go, besides, I need to be by your side to prevent anything from happening to you, in case you shoot yourself by accident." Kuroko had managed to give him a slight dirty look at his words.

He wasn't that bad at shooting, he just didn't always hit the mark on target, he wasn't that far off the mark anyways, and that one time when he hit the ceiling was an accident never meant to happen. He blames the faulty safety lock for that incident.

Kise chuckled at Kagami's words while he waved his other hand which was holding the teacup, and not draped around Kuroko's shoulders, before he proceeded to reply with amusement.

"You don't need to worry about that Kagami-cchi~! I'm more than capable enough of protecting Kuroko-cchi from any kinds of danger." He had managed a wink at the end of his sentence before he then gulped down the rest of the tea that was meant to be Kuroko's drink and proceeding to put the cup back on its tray.

Kagami had only raised his eyebrows in silence before he directed a curious question towards the blonde.

"So what do you know about the demon inside that book?" Kise's smile seemed to only grow wider and more malicious as he then turned to fully set his narrowed gaze to meet Kagami's own before replying slowly with a lower voice.

"Well, it was brief but that demon was definitely a strong one, in fact I'm trembling with excitement when I thought of facing him on one on one." His gaze had somehow turned more thrilled and savage as he uttered the words out.

Kagami raised one of his brows at the blonde's insinuation of the latter fighting the demon alone before he proceeds to correct the other's words.

"Who said you're going to face him alone? We're coming too you know."

Kise gave a cheeky innocent grin before he replied back with his usual light and cheerful tone.

"That demon is too strong for any of your familiars Kagami-cchi~, besides I alone is more than enough to subjugate that demon by myself." He gave a contemptuous smirk while he uttered the words out towards the now very provoked Kagami.

"What did you say?!" Kagami yelled as he stood up from his seat and glared at the smirking blonde with much anger boiling within him at the insult.

Kuroko had proceeded to get up from his seat to calm the enraged Kagami down while levelling Kise with a reprimanding gaze before he then proceeded to speak his thoughts out.

"Kagami-kun please calm down, we have no time for fights like these, and Kise-kun, please refrain from speaking unnecessary things, we are all in this together."

Kagami had somehow calmed down, since Kuroko had looked at him with that calming cool gaze of his, before he proceeded to sit back down on the sofa while levelling a silent glare towards a very unaffected Kise.

"When are we leaving?" Kagami had muttered the question while choosing to direct his gaze towards the silent teal head instead.

"We're leaving now, get your things ready Kagami-kun." Kagami had only rolled his eyes at that.

He was as ready as he can be, he thought, as he patted the guns and the countless replacements of silver bullets along with the smoke bombs that he had hidden well under his jacket. 

* * *

It was already pitch black outside by the time they had reached the library. Kuroko is silently thankful that the place wasn't too far of a travel from his own apartment.

The three of them had walked in silence along the way and it hasn't been broken until they had reached the steps of the library's grand entrance.

The door, of course, was locked but Kuroko had his ways as he silently took out his lock picking tools and had started to work on the door. It wasn't long before the door silently clicked as it had released its lock under his manipulative acts.

They silently entered the place and were met with the deserted and dark hallways, much in contrast to this morning's rather over populated ones.

Kuroko was about to step further into the place when Kagami had grabbed his shoulders to stop him, to which Kuroko only gave a silent inquiring stare in return. Kagami hadn't said anything, only gesturing with his eyes towards the top left hand corner inside of the library's entrance.

Ah, a CCTV camera, Kuroko had forgotten about that one small detail.

The camera was pointed in their general direction as it blinked its active red light towards them, but it wasn't positioned in a close enough distance to have captured any of their distinctive features just yet.

Kuroko was about to gesture for them to enter from one of the windows instead and proceed to walk from the camera's blind spot when suddenly Kise had snapped his fingers before the camera then gave a jolt of electrocuting sound as a silent 'poof' could be heard; puffs of blown out smoke was slowly coming out and evaporating from its lenses.

The beeping red light had been extinguished.

Kuroko turned his head towards his familiar who had given him a small cheeky smile before he proceeded to bow and gesture for Kuroko to walk first.

Kuroko had only sighed softly before he silently got back towards his task of leading the group towards the exhibition in question.

They had finally arrived in front of the glass casing which had held the book in question while checking for anymore cameras along the way, to which there were none.

Kagami silently stared at the book with apparent scrutiny and disbelief written across his face.

"Is this seriously the book that you guys were talking about? It's just an old and decrepit rotten book, like seriously though." Kagami had muttered as he continued to stare at the old and worn out book sensing nothing wrong with it while Kuroko had proceeded to put on his gloves and went on with lifting the glass case of the exhibit.

Kagami couldn't believe this shit; he had come all the way here in the middle of the night while breaking into a public library just for some stupid middle-ages encyclopaedia, like seriously, what the fuck is on everyone's damn minds.

Kuroko had proceeded to lift the glass cover off while ignoring Kagami's grumbles and complaints before he then stared at the book that was now free of its encasing.

Kuroko reached out his hands to take the book within his hold. It was much heavier than he had expected, and he had slight difficulty in handling the bulk of decaying papers in his hands when Kise had come to his rescue and lifted the burden off his hands for him instead.

"Thank you Kise-kun, let's see if we can find something from within this book." Kise had managed to turn the pages around silently while searching for any unusual features of some kind.

Kuroko had observed the book while Kise's hands were rapidly turning the pages around when he had noticed of the unusual thickness of the book's cover.

He proceeded to touch the cover while running his fingers over the bindings when suddenly Kise had stopped his search and instead chose to throw the book away while lunging towards Kuroko with inhuman speed and proceeded to grab and cover his body with his own.

There was a loud whistle in the air of something being shot barely a split second after Kise had moved and protected Kuroko with his own body. They both had looked up towards the source of the sound only to find a small hole embedded in the walls where Kuroko would've been if Kise hadn't charged at him.

Kagami had opened his mouth in shock before he regained his composure a second after and proceeded to chant his summoning spell.

"I call upon thee, he of the netherworld and spawn of the Devil, heed my call and appear upon my words, Draco." There was a flash of brilliant light which had made Kagami squint in return before there was a man standing in front of him who is already proceeding to enter into a defensive stance.

"Well, well, Taiga, what a surprise indeed, things must be going pretty bad for you to summon me out here." The man had smiled before looking back towards Kagami's face with his one uncovered eye which has a very distinct beauty mark on the bottom of it.

"Aw shut up Tatsuya, just get on with it!" Kagami had grumbled towards his strongest familiar, Himuro Tatsuya, who proceeded to chuckle in a calm manner before he silently looked around the area in search of the perpetrator.

Kuroko and Kise had already got up from the ground and had stood cautiously next to each other while also searching for the cause of the disturbance.

The silence enveloping the halls was deafening as they kept a look out for any irregularities within the area and what makes it quite difficult to handle was the fact that none of them can sense anything in particular, no presence, no traces, nothing.

The suspense was almost too unbearable for them before there was the familiar sound again as something proceeded to cut through the air and embedded itself on the walls next to Kagami's head instead.

It was a light beam, almost too thin and fast for the human eye to capture but they had seen it burning through the walls nevertheless. Kuroko was still searching for the origin of the light beam when Kise had suddenly muttered a 'crap' in response.

There was another loud whistling sound and then another and even more until the air was almost deafening with the high pitched noise that it had caused, as the room was suddenly brightened by a billion light beams that shoots at them from every single angle within the hallway.

Kise and Himuro had managed to create a shield around them though, barely a second before the light beam hits them. Once the attack was all parried, they had all looked up as an unmistakable demonic presence had then proceeded to reveal and make itself known.

The book lying forgotten on the floor seemed to glow a soft green light from within its bindings in response to the sound of footsteps that was drawing nearer and nearer towards them from the ends of the dark hallways.

Kise and Himuro had both proceeded to stand protectively in front of their masters while silently waiting and staring in anticipation towards the arrival of the newcomer.

The stranger had then approached and proceeded to stand and bask in the light of the moon filtering through the windows, as he stared at the four of them with a cold and calculating gaze.

Kagami had gulped at the appearance of their unexpected guest.

This man was no ordinary demon, he thought silently as he prepared his own loaded gun and unlocked the safety before handing the other one towards Kuroko who had accepted it from him without breaking his gaze from the newcomer.

Kise couldn't stand the deafening silence enveloping them as he then proceeded to talk to the stranger in an attempt of cutting through the too thick atmosphere.

"Well, it seems that I have to apologize as I was rather underestimating of your abilities when I had thought I could've beaten you alone with no problem. I hadn't considered of the fact that you could also take on human form without needing a summoner." Kise had grinned in all of his liveliness towards the stranger who had proceeded to frown in distaste, as if he was displeased of what had just been said towards him.

"Do not compare me to the likes of you who would grovel and sink to the level of begging and serving for meagre humans." Kise's smile had faltered as he had heard the stranger's scorning words and registered it in his mind.

Damn, this demon was rude as fuck; he thought as he then changed his bright smiles into a menacing feral grin instead before he proceeded to reply with a low guttural sound.

"Well why don't we find out who's stronger then? My name is Kise Ryouta and I'll make sure to burn it into your head as I smash your brains out of your skull."

The tall green haired demon then proceeded to raise his hand to fix the glasses perched on top of his straight nose before levelling a challenging gaze towards the silently eager blonde.

"Hmph, you can waste your time on such useless attempts as much as you like, that is, until I shoot a clean hole through your head, and I, Midorima Shintarou, never misses my target." 

* * *

_A/N_: *Throws chapter in the air!* Here you go guys, finally done! Sorry for the wait, I've actually completed this one a couple hours after I published chapter 2 lol, I would've published it as well if I was actually sure on what I was writing lol, lack of sleep can do weird things on your minds and man I made some major mistakes when I first type this out, (thank god for the rationality sleep can provide you) so I went and edit it again after I was more sober and intact lol, and here it issssssss... Anyways thank you for all the reviews favourites and follows it means a lot to me, like I've said in the previous chapters I haven't actually written since 7th grade for creative writing (I'm in 3rd yr uni now) so it really makes me feel somewhat touched that people actually like my story and all the comments motivate me to write more :) thank you all! I hope you enjoy this chapter and don't worry, the next one is being worked on now lol


	4. Of light and darkness

**_Chapter 4 – Of light and darkness_**

The library had turned into the scene of a battlefield in mere seconds as the two demons had then proceeded to face off while using their own destructive methods in fighting each other.

Kagami had pulled Kuroko towards him as Himuro created a barrier for them to hide under as they moved to escape from the chaotic situation at hand.

This has gotten way beyond of their control fast, Kagami had thought with utter disdain and annoyance as he dragged himself with Himuro and Kuroko out towards finding a cover.

They had managed to move out of direct fire while Kuroko then proceeded to try and look past at the scene that was unfolding from behind the pillar that they were hiding under.

Kuroko was not concerned about his safety in the least, he knew he was more than safe enough where he's currently at and he trusts in Kise's ability to protect him from any harm or danger from coming in his way and the latter wouldn't be so careless as to let any misfired shots accidentally hitting him during the intense battle he was currently having with the demon named Midorima.

Kuroko was in fact more concerned of his familiar's safety as the blonde is currently throwing lightning fast kicks and punches which was easily dodged by the agile Midorima. He needed to think of a plan fast, this is getting way too intense and he's afraid that the library would've been reduced to rubbles by the time they had finished their fight. Besides, his mission's goal wasn't to make Takao lose his job after all.

Kuroko was silent for a while as he was captured in his own thoughts as Kagami and Himuro was discussing on what to do next.

"Ok, this is totally fucked up, Tatsuya what can you tell me about this demon? Is there any way for us to stop him at all?"

"He's strong Taiga, too strong for me to handle alone, Kise seems to be doing the best he can already and he's not doing much to curb the damage the other is inflicting." Kagami scowled at the truth of his words, it is true that Kise and Midorima are somehow evenly matched however Midorima's elusive light beams are quite difficult to shield yourself from, especially with the speed it's currently fired at, and eventually some had managed to graze and hit Kise although it didn't stop the blonde from throwing his own attacks at the other.

Kuroko finally broke his silence and looked up towards both Kagami and Himuro with a determined pair of eyes that held and revealed none of his own thoughts from within them.

"Kagami-kun, Himuro-kun, could you please listen to me? I have a plan."

Kagami and Himuro stared at Kuroko for a second before they looked at each other and Kagami gave a silent nod in agreement for both of them.

* * *

Kise was the first to move at Midorima during their face off. He had charged with his lightning speed and had proceeded to throw his fist out in an attempt to punch the other in the face. Kise couldn't help himself the guy was fucking annoying and rude, even for a demon.

Midorima parried, in a speed equal to or even greater than what Kise had shown, with grace and fluidity as he scornfully looked at the other before uttering the words.

"This is why demons like you are no good; even monkeys can throw such attacks without blinking. The true power lies within accuracy and the ability to attack from a wide range of distance, and so, I shall win this battle." Kise's scowl widened at the condescending words as he then proceeds to throw a flurry of punches and kicks towards the other with an even greater speed than before.

Midorima dodged and parried them all before he then proceeds to attack with his light beams to which Kise had managed to block by forming a barrier just in time.

Tch, this demon is strong indeed, he thought with utter thrill and savage glee. Kise hadn't felt like this for a very long time, he had finally met someone who was on equal grounds with him in battle and it boils his blood with uncontainable ecstasy.

Kise decided that he needs to pull out all stops to defeat this guy, however it was not the time just yet, he thought as he continued to attack in a similar manner while parrying the other's constant attacks in retaliation.

It was a never ending battle with the both of them somehow evenly matched through all of their offensive and defensive measures.

However, Midorima soon raised his speed and proceeds to create more light beams that seemed to be somewhat thicker and shoot much faster and harder than it had ever before.

Kise couldn't block some of them on time and they had managed to hit him and cut through his skin. He clicked his tongue in annoyance as one had just barely grazed him on the cheek almost hitting his eye. His wounds heal much faster than a human's though, as the gashes on his arms and legs had already almost fully healed by the time he had managed put his barrier down.

"You didn't think that was all I could do now, did you? " Midorima had uttered as they went into a standstill with Kise breathing slightly harder and more rugged than the other who seemed to have no traces of fatigue or exhaustion showing on his physical surface whatsoever.

Kise had to honestly admit, Midorima is very powerful and he knew he was in for a lot of trouble as he stare upon the other's calculating and fierce gaze. He had realized then that the other hadn't shown all of his cards just yet and he has a lot more coming up from where it came from.

Kise decided that he needs to end this everlasting battle and it was about time that he turned serious as well. There was no more reason for him to prolong the fight any further and besides he needs to ensure his Kuroko-cchi's safety and he doesn't want to risk any more damage than they've already caused to their surroundings. Not like he cared about that particular detail, but still, he doesn't want to get his master into more trouble and risk his safety any more than he already has now.

Kise's eyes gleamed in the darkness of the night as he then inhaled a deep breath and proceeded to change his stance into a more relaxed and instinctual posture.

Midorima watched with slightly widened eyes as Kise then proceeded to raise out his hands, exactly like how Midorima did when he was about to summon his… No, it can't be, he thought as Kise then smirked with a triumphant glee when the deafening sounds of whistling is piercing through the air unmistakably as spears of light beams then shoots out towards Midorima from every angle that was possible.

Midorima threw a barrier out in time to shield himself as the light beams that he is so familiar with had shot at him with precise and deadly accuracy. Once the beams had been dissipated, Midorima threw a silent menacing glare at the blonde who is now smiling leisurely towards him while uttering the words.

"Now, now, you didn't think that throwing kicks and punches was all I could do now, did you?" Midorima had scowled deeply as the words that he had uttered at the blond earlier were now being thrown back at him.

The situation has now changed, Midorima noticed, as he was now the one who had to block and parry all of the sickeningly familiar attacks thrown at him by the blonde instead.

The noisy blonde demon named Kise Ryouta is stronger than he looks; Midorima had to grudgingly admit to himself as he then came to a decision in regards of his counter attack.

As Midorima had just managed to block yet another attack of his familiar arrow beams from Kise, he then proceeded to came to a halt as he purposely dismantled his shield down and silently raised his left hand instead before he releases the thin white wrappings that had been covering his fingers.

Kise proceeded to stop on his tracks as well as he stared at the other with shocked and widened eyes.

This guy can't be fucking serious; he was wearing a seal on his powers all this time? Just what is the depth of his true strength? Kise thought to himself, as he had noticed that the bandages covering the other's fingers was, in fact, a seal acting as a limit to his true demonic powers.

As the trail of released bandages had silently fallen to the ground, Midorima then raised his left hand one more time as he was about to deliver the true power of his intense arrow beams towards the blonde demon who had already erected a sturdy and thick barrier on his stead while also copying his stance in making more light beams to parry Midorima's ones as he was sure that a mere shield isn't enough to block Midorima's attacks anymore.

Then suddenly, there was a loud boom as all of a sudden the whole area was covered with thick black smoke.

Midorima and Kise had both looked up from their death match to see, between the thick smokes, Kagami aiming his gun to shoot at Midorima while Himuro is following closely behind him, prepared to shield them both from any possible counter attacks.

Midorima proceeded to dodge the silver bullets that were being shot at him continuously by Kagami with ease while proceeding to create more of his arrow beams to counter the attacks thrown at him.

Kise was silently grateful for the interference, as his Perfect Copy ability of Midorima's skills had almost reached its time limit, and he needed to conserve his stamina if he wanted to be able to defeat the other demon.

He proceeded to fall back with Kagami instead and helping Himuro in shielding the redhead while the latter continuously shot bullet after bullet at Midorima who dodged everything effortlessly with ease.

There was something very strange though, and Kise had noticed it from the beginning but didn't want to comment on it as he knows that there must be a plan in motion for the other to disappear without notice.

And if he knew better, he would've said that it was somehow related to the fact that Kagami would continuously throw smoke bombs at Midorima's direction whenever the clouds of thick smog was about to fade. Besides, he didn't think Kagami was stupid enough to let the teal head out of his sight without a plan and knowing that the other would be safe enough by himself.

They continued on like that for a while, with Kagami shooting endless streams of silver bullets at the other while Midorima dodged and retaliated back with his own arrow beams, which have considerably more power now that his seal is removed.

It took all of Himuro's power just to block one of Midorima's beams, he's not even sure he can defend against them if Kise wasn't there helping him with the barrier.

Still, he just hopes that their plan would work successfully and on time.

Kagami was about to throw another smoke bomb at the other when he realizes that he had run out of them and proceeded to curse out loud.

"Fuck!" Kise had looked up at Kagami's loud swearing and frowned at the urgency he saw within the other's eyes before he then left Kagami's side and choose to go face Midorima on one on one instead.

Kise knew that Kagami was trying to act as a distraction to throw Midorima off something and he doesn't know what the plan is, but if it was for his master's sake, then he's going to give it all he's got. He proceeds to throw kicks and punches at the other again who had dodged effortlessly like they did at the beginning of their battle.

"So it's back to this again huh?" Midorima had muttered while he was dodging one of Kise's signature flying kicks from hitting his head before he then proceeds and was about to retaliate with shooting his arrow beams when he saw something out of the corners of his vision from within the fading smoke.

Midorima then turned his head fully towards the source of his distraction only to widen his eyes, as a certain teal head that he had forgotten was holding the book in his possession while sitting down on the floor with closed eyes and muttering enchantments off his lips, as he seemed to be deep in the middle of performing some kind of ritual.

Midorima proceeds to fiercely glare at the teal head before directing his light beams towards the latter.

"Shit! Himuro shield!" Kagami had already ran towards Kuroko's direction while yelling out of his lungs towards his familiar who was already by Kuroko's side and erecting a barrier around the teal head as Kagami had proceeded to join them.

Kise had quickly bolted to his master's direction as well when he saw Midorima's attention was directed towards the teal head and proceeded to stand in Midorima's way before giving him the most intense and fiery gaze as he raised both his hands to shield his master.

"I won't let you go any further than this! You will not lay a finger on Kuroko-cchi!" Kise had yelled from the top of his lungs as he proceeded to create and aim his Perfect Copy of Midorima's light beams while also erecting the biggest and strongest shield he could muster with Himuro's help from behind him.

Midorima glared fiercely at the other while raising his voice as he reached out both of his hands in the four's general direction with an intent to blast them into oblivion with his strongest attack.

"My arrow beams aren't so cheap that a tamed demon like you can block it with a meagre shield!"

Each one of them roared as they proceeded to move and release their attacks on the other as a blast of blinding light then filled the entire area.

And then, there was silence.

* * *

Kuroko had proceeded to move and went on with his plan as soon as Kagami had thrown the smoke bomb and charged at Midorima with his gun.

He used his natural ability and lack of presence to be as silently inconspicuous as possible while keeping low and moving stealthily across the wrecked library halls.

It was hard to see where he was heading with the thick smoke that covered the entire area but it was also necessary in order to provide a camouflage for him while he goes on with his plan. Besides, he already had a general idea on where the book lies since Kise had thrown it earlier.

He was silently reaching out his hands, searching, in hopes that he'll find what he was looking for, and fast, since he could feel the demonic aura that surrounded Midorima was suddenly getting stronger more than he had anticipated.

Bingo, he thought as he finally felt the roughness of the thick cover of the book within his hands. He proceeded to grab it and then sitting down as close to the wall as possible, in order to avoid anyone or anything from hitting him during this chaotic situation and gunfire that they're having now.

He was completely blind, due to the smoke, as he searched for something from inside the book using only his hands' sense of touch and his intuition. He is completely sure that Midorima's vessel gem is hidden somewhere within that book and he just needed to find out where exactly it is hidden.

He then suddenly remembered the scene from earlier where the light beam had shot at him as he was tracing his fingers along the bindings… the _bindings_! Kuroko's hands went straight to the bindings of the book as he was trying to feel for something, anything, which could possibly indicate where the gem might lie.

His hands then softly traced over and felt a particular odd spot just beneath the thick binding covers of the book. It was tiny, but there is definitely a faint bulge just in the middle of it.

The gem must be hidden there Kuroko thought as he attempted to somehow search for a way to pry open the bulge with his fingers and nails only for him to feel a sudden painful jolt of electricity coursing through his veins and throughout his entire body. It took him a lot of effort to remain silent while the pain dissipated from his systems as he then took deep breaths in order to regain his composure.

So there's a barrier protecting the gem, and it wasn't an easy one to break either. Damn it, his plan just got more and more complicated as he tries to execute everything within the time limit. And he doesn't have that much time left on his hands either when he recalled what Kagami had told him earlier. He had only brought five smoke bombs and if Kuroko had counted the blasts properly then he only has two left to go.

He proceeded to straighten up in his seating position as he then set the book down on his lap to be open and facing downwards so that the bindings were on top. He then closed his eyes and raised his hands over the book while muttering one of the more potent spells that was taught to him in order to break a strong seal or barrier. He's quite sure that it was going to work, no, he will make it work, for everyone's sake.

He gradually let the words of enchantment to form and roll off his tongue while concentrating on all of his spiritual energies and directing it to focus on his hands which were gradually brimming with energy as a burning heat slowly travelled across his palms.

Kuroko knew he wasn't as spiritually powerful or physically gifted as Kagami was, and so it took all of his strength and effort just to perform and finish the ritual to break the seal off the book. There was a final jolt of electricity coming from the book, as the seal was then removed, leaving no traces behind.

Kuroko opened his eyes a split second after, as he then proceeded to move on to the next ritual in revealing and sealing the gem hidden within the book. His stamina had already depleted considerably from performing the first high-level ritual and so he could only hope that the next and main ritual he's about to perform will be successful in sealing Midorima within his prison.

Kuroko changed his stance slightly as he touch his palms together and moved it closer towards his chest in a prayer gesture before he then proceeded to close his eyes again and muttered another set of words for the sealing ritual.

This ritual will most likely deplete him of all of his spiritual and physical energy and even worse may cause him to faint on the spot then and there. He only had one chance to perform the ritual and he's intent on making it a success, even if it will cost him more than just his body.

He continues on with his ritual, even when he'd heard Kagami's approaching loud scream from somewhere within the background. He cannot afford to lose his concentration at all now since everyone's lives depend on his willpower and success in sealing the demon within his own vessel.

He will seal Midorima; he thought with determination as he then heard of Kise's declaration to protect him from within his consciousness. He smiled faintly towards himself as he kept on muttering the last of his enchantments for the seal to be complete, his familiar had trusted him and so he's determined not to fail the trust that had been put on his hands.

There was a blast and a blinding light that was visible even from within his closed lids as he then finished muttering the last of his sentence for the ritual. A blast of searing heat had run across his entire body while seeming to drain and pull out all of his energy from within its wake as he then grew limp and his breathing slowed down to a halt.

Kuroko realized that he was now lying on the floor, he hadn't fainted but he was close to it as he felt utterly powerless and exhausted, unable to even move a muscle. His body felt as heavy as lead and it took him all of his willpower to open his eyes slightly as he tried to adjust barely to his surroundings.

He could see the rubbles from the aftermath of the havoc and chaos they had wreaked during their encounter and battle with Midorima. He had then spotted Kise, Kagami, and Himuro's forms which had been thrown to the ground due to the impact of the blast from their colliding attacks with Midorima's. They were slowly regaining their composure after the impact and had proceeded in moving to get up from the ground they're on. Kuroko could feel the silent burden lifted from his heart; at least everyone is safe, he thought, before he then closed his eyes and let the relief flood into his entire being.

Kise had gotten up off the ground as soon as he had regained his composure and proceeded to look for Kuroko from behind him. He is worried for his master's safety and Midorima's last attack was barely stoppable by their efforts combined. Kise had located Kuroko immediately as the teal head was laying on the ground and he could feel his heart stop at the sight.

Oh God, please let him be okay. Kise didn't think he would ever have the ability to pray to a god in his entire life as a demon but he just did when he saw Kuroko's motionless form on the ground. He quickly closed off the distance within them as he then proceeded to pick Kuroko's limp form off the ground and into his arms before shaking the teal head's shoulders vigorously.

"Kuroko-cchi! Please don't die on me!" He had managed to yell with utter desperation and worry clouding his eyes. He really didn't want for anything to happen to Kuroko, and it was unusual since demons aren't supposed to feel such intense emotions towards their masters, after all there's only so much bond that they could share what with their differing principles and morals from each other.

Kagami had also ran towards Kuroko's side with Himuro following closely behind him as the three of them then looked at the teal head's pale face with worried gazes.

"You're being too noisy Kise-kun." Kuroko had managed to mutter weakly as he then proceeded to open his sky blue eyes towards Kise, and Kise had never felt gladder in his whole entire life to see those sky blue eyes staring right back at his own.

"You're alive!" Kise had proceeded to yell again before glomping Kuroko into a bone-crunching tight hug that had constricted Kuroko's already shallow breathing while crying with tears streaming down his face rather comically.

Kagami widened his eyes as he noticed Kuroko's shallow breaths before he then tried to pry at Kise's death hug while yelling at the blonde.

"You idiot, _you're_ gonna crush him to death instead!" Kise had only looked towards Kagami with a silent confused frown at the latter's outburst to their very touching reunion, until Kuroko then muttered with a restricted voice under his shallow breaths.

"Kise-kun, can't breathe…" and thank the gods that Kise had received his message as the other had then proceeded to release Kuroko from his hug before it had become fatal.

Kise had managed a slightly apologetic grin towards a very relieved Kuroko who then proceeded to try and sit up on the ground. Kise had helped to support him in his attempt as he could sense that his master is currently very weak and depleted of both his spiritual and physical energy.

Kuroko had proceeded to lay his eyes on the book lying next to him on the ground before his gaze then went to the item right beside of it.

Kuroko reached out with slightly trembling hands towards the item before picking it up and cradling it within his hands. It was a large radiant cut emerald that seemed to shine and glow from within its captivating beauty that was too magnificent and treacherous for words.

He was more than aware of the dangers that the emerald possessed, more exactly, the dangers that the demon inside of it possessed, however Kuroko couldn't help feeling the slightest bit of admiration at Midorima's perseverance until the end. The latter had not and did not give up until the very end and especially gave him a hard time in sealing him within his vessel completely.

Kuroko was lucky he had survived the ordeal, as many summoners are known to have fatalities when they've exceeded the limits of their own power. It was a bet that he had won and somehow walked out alive from.

Kagami proceeded to sigh as he stared at the radiant cut emerald with somehow disbelieving eyes. He did not think that everything would go as well as it did and he thanked the high heavens for their success, although his imminent relief soon turned into grave horror as his eyes then landed on their surroundings.

Oh fuck, he could only hope that Hyuuga won't actually kill them both for this, and he was sure that the Society will find out sooner or later. It was only a matter of time before they find the countless evidences leading towards him and Kuroko being involved after all. He can already feel the headache forming on the back of his head and he preferred to not think about their impending doom right now.

The group's overall relief seemed to be voiced out loud by the very chirpy blonde who had exclaimed rather enthusiastically as he waved his hands around exaggeratedly.

"We did it! We sealed that rude and annoying demon~ Kuroko-cchi you're the best, I knew you could do it!" Kise proceeded to wink at his master who had only rolled his eyes and smiled at the gesture. Himuro chuckled in the background as he then sighed with absolute relief on their mission's success. He wasn't sure that the plan will work when Kuroko had first told them, but now he was just glad that everything's over and can't wait to get back home with Kagami so that he can rest and recover within his own sanctuary again.

Kagami proceeded to sigh before he mumbled under his breath.

"Ugh, yeah awesome, let's go home… I'm gonna need all the rest I can get before I have to face Hyuuga later." Kuroko visibly tensed at Kagami's words before he then sighed as he looked around at the mess that they have caused.

He had inwardly apologized to an unknowing Takao about the wreckage that is his workplace now, before he then got up with the help of Kise and the four of them then proceeded to walk out of the library and into the very first light of the dawn.

The day had barely even started, yet the four of them felt like they're more than prepared to pass it off and, instead, get their very much needed rest.

* * *

_A/N_: *kills self* This chapter was so damn hard to write lol, all of the fuckin fighting and intense scenes, grahhh, this is too much for a beginner like me! lol, why can't y'all demons just ride unicorns and fly off to lala land or something like seriously though? Anyways on a more important note, THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR REVIEWS AND FAVORITES AND FOLLOWS I can't say it enough, it really really kept me going, especially in writing and editing this chapter and providing it you all lol, it was so goddamn hard that I just go awol and went dancing to some music for a while lol, anyways look forward to the next chapter and the shocking (really?) conclusion to Midorima's arc and the beginning of... ;) well I won't say too much just yet hahaha (*evil laughter*) well, see you all next time ;D


	5. Of loose ends and new beginnings

**_Chapter 5 – Of loose ends and new beginnings_**

Kise had carried Kuroko towards his apartment in the same manner that they had left their latest mission barely a few days ago.

They proceed to enter into the silent apartment as Kuroko then stepped down from Kise's arms and went to remove his shoes upon entering his threshold. He was tired, his body is sore all over and he really needed rest, but he knew that those were luxuries which he cannot afford and were not meant to be within his grasps just yet.

First, he needs to clean himself up and change his clothes from the sweat and grime that had come from all of the fighting and hard work of sealing the demon, and then he needs to go straight to his headquarters to report the incident and also hand over the custody of the sealed emerald gemstone to them. There were a million things he needs to do and he is not so sure he can actually do them all in the state he's currently in now.

First things first though, he then trained his eyes towards Kise who had followed his actions in removing his shoes before proceeding to walk inside and lay down on the sofa. Kuroko went to walk towards the living room as well, before he then proceeded to stand next to Kise who had only looked up towards Kuroko with a smile and slightly confused gaze.

"Kise-kun, thank you for all of your help and hard work today, it would've been impossible for me to do this mission alone and I am glad that I have you by my side as my familiar." Kise had widened his eyes as Kuroko proceeded to bow slightly towards the blonde who then gazed towards Kuroko with intense emotions and glistening eyes at the words and gesture of appreciation that the other had voiced at him.

Kise didn't respond to the actions with his usual eager antics, instead he proceeded to sit up straight before he then smiled genuinely and moved his right hand towards his chest over his heart while speaking with a strong and reverberating voice.

"It is my honour to be able to be of assistance to you, Kuroko-cchi, you are the first and last master that I will ever serve within this existence of mine." It was one of those very rare and heartfelt moments that Kise has ever had with Kuroko and he wants to make sure that Kuroko fully realize what his presence and very being means to Kise.

Kuroko showed one of his rare smiles that seemed to brighten up everything within the room while also showing the gratitude that he's feeling from having the other by his side before he then straightened his face back to its usual cool and neutral expression as he then proceeds to speak towards Kise of his initial purpose in approaching the other.

"Kise-kun, you must be tired from the mission, why don't you go and rest within your topaz, I'll be fine on my own for now, and I'm sure that you'll need to recover your strength after wounding and exerting yourself from earlier." Kuroko had looked at Kise with a soft and somehow worried gaze which Kise returned with a slightly grateful and reluctant one before he decides to accept the offer which the teal head had proposed.

While he actually wanted to stay by Kuroko's side until he is sure that his master had regained his own strength and energy, Kise also sees the truth in Kuroko's words. He does need to recover his own strength if he wants to protect his master properly, especially after exerting himself by using his Perfect Copy in order to help seal and defeat Midorima, and so he had then gave one small smile and a final wave of his hands before closing his eyes, as a bright light then covered the entire area before fading away as soon as it had appeared, and by then, his form had already disappeared without a trace.

Kuroko sighed as he then slumped onto the couch adjacent to where Kise was lying down before. His tough façade has been taken down completely as he let the weariness and fatigue take over his features.

He closed his eyes as he leaned back against the soft couch and gave a long tired sigh, the day is only going to get busier and he needs to have a little rest before he actually starts to prepare for facing the troubles ahead of him.

A couple of minutes had passed as Kuroko basked in the peaceful silence within his apartment before he then opened his eyes wearily and proceeded to get up from his seat before heading towards his room to get some fresh clothes to change into and then heading towards his bathroom instead.

He turned on the shower and proceeded to remove his clothes in a slow lethargic manner as he let them fall onto the tiled bathroom floor before he then entered into the transparent glass of the shower cubicle and basked himself within the warmth that the running water had provided.

Kuroko closed his eyes and breathed a sigh of relief as he felt the tiredness within his aching muscles was gradually being washed away as the warmth of the water works its way over his body.

He only stood like that for a while, not moving and not doing anything else, just letting the fatigue and weariness he felt over the entire night disappear slowly but surely. He was already feeling better by the time he had opened his eyes again.

Kuroko was about to grab the bath sponge and soap to scrub the grime and sweat away from his skin, when suddenly, there was a blast of blinding light coming from behind, enveloping the entire bathroom.

Kuroko didn't have the time to be surprised before he was then slammed hard against the walls of his shower as a hand proceeded to grab his neck and hold him into a strong choking grip while pressing him up on his back against the shower walls.

Kuroko couldn't do anything in the vulnerable state that he's in, he had barely recovered his energy from performing the sealing ritual earlier and he also doesn't have his summoning bracelet with him at the moment since he had removed it earlier before he entered the showers.

Kuroko turned his bleary and shocked eyes towards the intruder standing directly in front him and gazed into his intense glowing green eyes instead.

Midorima had stood there while holding Kuroko within his choking grip and gazing at the other with intense fury and rage seething within his eyes. He then muttered the words in a slow and low growl while tightening the grip he had on the latter's neck considerably.

"How can a weak human like you, think that you are able to seal me, within my own soul stone nevertheless?" He had spat the words out with obvious rage and bitterness held within his tone as Kuroko was trying to gasp for air desperately before he then replied to Midorima's seething question with a faint raspy voice.

"I… It's not that I am sure of my own abilities to seal you, it's just that… I… trust in my comrade's abilities… and for Kise-kun to protect and help me while I do so… regardless on the outcome… and so I did my best for their sakes… and for my own." It took all of Kuroko's breath and effort just so he could reply to the question as Midorima's strong grip on his neck is successfully blocking out the air from entering his lungs.

Kuroko could see black spots forming within his vision as his breath were getting shorter and shorter by the second. Midorima narrowed his eyes at the reply as his furious gaze then slowly changed into one of bewilderment and turmoil as a slight hesitance seemed to colour his expression for a second before he then released the hold he has on the teal head's neck.

Kuroko proceeded to fall down to his knees onto the wet shower grounds while coughing violently and gasping for the much needed air.

Midorima took a step back as he stared down at the fragile and small form of the teal head while furrowing his brows with obvious distaste and silent anger at his own turbulent emotions as he watched while the teal head tried to regain his composure and breath.

Midorima didn't want to kill him just yet, no, he needs to seek for answers to satisfy and confirm all of his questions and doubts before he is able to kill him.

Once Kuroko had started to breathe somewhat normally, he then turned his head to face the green haired demon once again, while levelling him with a gaze that held faint confusion and slight wariness.

Midorima only stared back towards the other with his cold and calculating mask back on his face while proceeding to utter another question at the silent teal head as they kept on their lock into each other's gaze.

"You… How can you have so much faith and trust on your familiar, even though he's also a demon himself?"

Kuroko hadn't expected the question and so he was stunned to silence for a while before he then realized that the other's gaze was silently demanding and waiting for him to answer his inquiry and so he took a deep breath before he then gazed back at the other's eyes with equal and or even greater intensity while proceeding to answer his questions.

"It doesn't matter whether Kise-kun is a demon or a human, I simply trust fully in Kise-kun's abilities, and that he will protect me from any harm. It is something that I am allowed and more than happy to be able to do, for him as his friend, and for the trust and faith that he had also given in me to be deserving as his summoner." Midorima's eyes widened with shock and astonishment at the declaration that Kuroko had given him in regards of his familiar.

Midorima has never seen or heard, throughout the entirety of his life, of any human to speak so highly of any demon and the same applies reversely. Kise's determined and fiery gaze, as he was protecting the human in front of him, was still burned onto his memory as the last thing he saw before he was sealed within his own gem.

Midorima proceeded to ask him another question, while fixing his intense and fierce gaze that demands only the truth towards the teal head.

"Human, what is your name?"

Kuroko proceeded to meet his intense gaze with his own calm and collected ones before replying straight to the other's question.

"My name is Kuroko Tetsuya."

Midorima hated those eyes; it was as if the other wasn't even fazed of him breaking the latter's seal so easily, and nearly killing him within his own house in the process, and it was unsettling him to the point of driving his mind into utter chaos.

Kuroko Tetsuya is an enigma, and it made Midorima yearns to seek and know more of the intriguing human who is able to tame and subdue a demon as strong as Kise Ryouta.

There must be a reason as to why the blonde demon is so willing to kneel and serve the human called Kuroko that is in front of him, and he's determined to find out exactly what it is and Midorima won't let anyone else to touch the teal head or let him die until then.

And so, there is only one thing left for him to do, Midorima concludes, as he then broke his gaze from the teal head's and proceeded to walk towards the opposite direction of the silently perplexed Kuroko.

Kuroko had honestly thought that Midorima would kill him once he had answered all of the latter's questions, he hadn't dismissed the idea from his thoughts either. However he was silently dumbstruck when Midorima suddenly choose to turn away from him and instead walked the opposite direction and towards his pile of recently used clothes that he had left on the ground.

Midorima proceeded to kneel down on the floor while he seemed to be searching for something from within Kuroko's pile of dirty laundry before the other then proceeds to grab at something from inside his hoodie's pockets and held it firmly within his hands.

Kuroko was rather confused at what the other was searching for until he remembered that he had left the emerald inside of his jacket's pockets and had forgotten about it due to his fatigue and weariness over their earlier situation. It was careless of him to do so, and now Midorima will probably walk out of his apartment freely after killing him for sealing the other, even if it was only for a little while.

Midorima had turned his gaze silently towards him again while approaching the wet and naked Kuroko, who was still kneeling down on the shower floors from the shock and lack of energy to be able to get up without the high possibility of falling back down again, as he was silently anticipating for the worst.

But to his surprise, Midorima proceeds to intensely gaze at the teal head's own sky blue eyes for a while before he then silently kneels down so his gaze could levelly meet Kuroko's own as he then offered his left hand out towards Kuroko before opening it to reveal the shining emerald within his palms.

Kuroko widened his eyes at the gesture while switching his gaze between Midorima's face and the emerald with clear shock written within his eyes. He could not believe what was currently happening in front of him.

Midorima was offering him his gem, and the act signifies so much more when it comes from a demon, especially a proud and strong one like Midorima.

Midorima is willingly giving Kuroko his vessel, his entire reason for existence within the human realm. He was giving him, his soul stone.

"Take it." Midorima's voice had broken through Kuroko's disbelief and shocked train of thoughts before the teal head then looked up towards Midorima's gaze and saw that there was no hesitance within the other's eyes.

Kuroko looked back down at the shining radiant cut emerald before he then slowly reached out with slightly trembling hands towards the gem. However his hands stopped short before actually touching it, as he then proceeded to gaze with all seriousness towards the silently waiting Midorima.

"Are you sure about this, Midorima-kun?" Midorima widened his eyes at the teal head, as if he was shocked to have even been asked such a question in the first place, before he then proceeded to speak with the ghost of a smile forming on his lips.

"Kuroko Tetsuya, you are one very odd human, normally no one would hesitate to receive a demon's soul stone, however you are very different, and I intend to unravel the mysteries and wonders that you hold within your very being, and so, I am sure of my actions. Take it and don't question me again." Midorima had uttered the words like an order instead and Kuroko was somehow still rather dazed from the entire surreal situation that is happening before him as he then reached out his hands and touched Midorima's palms before taking the emerald within his own fist.

Midorima then silently gazed towards Kuroko with unreadable emotions before he moved his right hand to touch over his chest, just above his heart, as he then silently bowed his head without breaking his gaze towards Kuroko while announcing the words to seal their contract.

"I, Sagaciter, will serve you, Kuroko Tetsuya, and be bound to you until the end of our days." The emerald within Kuroko's hand glows a bright green light as proof of the contract that was then sealed the moment that Midorima had revealed his true name and pledged his loyalty towards Kuroko.

While Kuroko still tries to comprehend the entirely unexpected situation within his mind, Midorima was silently gazing at the teal head as if waiting for the latter to actually do something first before responding with the appropriate counteraction.

Kuroko then looked up at Midorima and saw that the latter was still staring at him with an intense gaze, and it made him realize of the improperness of their situation, which immediately caused him to be uncomfortable and somehow embarrassed, since he was currently naked and wet, in his showers, with another man gazing right at him, and so he voiced out his thoughts.

"Umm, Midorima-kun, if you don't mind, would you please wait for me outside the bathroom, I am, after all, currently in the middle of taking a shower."

Midorima only seemed to be puzzled while blinking slowly for a while before he then widened his eyes, as the full weight and meaning of the entirety of the situation crashed down upon his mind, and proceeded to get up with lightning fast speed before turning his face the other way around.

"I apologize, I have completely forgotten of that fact within the current situation, it was careless of me, and it won't happen again." Midorima's voice was still in its usual apathetic tone; however, while Kuroko couldn't see Midorima's expression he could still see the redness that tinged Midorima's ears.

Midorima stood frozen for a while as if he was silently flustered and confused on what to do before Kuroko then realized this and spoke with a patient and somehow calm and soothing voice.

"Midorima-kun, the living room is just right down the hall and straight out of the door."

Midorima didn't say anything else in return; in fact, he bolted straight out of the door and proceeded to close it as soon as the words are out of Kuroko's mouth.

Kuroko stared after the other with silent bewilderment that had somehow turned to amusement as he realized that the entire situation may not be as bad as it looks.

So, that Midorima could be rather awkward as well, Kuroko silently chuckled at the thought, before he then proceeded to continue with his task that was interrupted moments ago.

* * *

Kuroko went to his headquarters feeling rather calm, even with the silent knowledge of the obvious trouble that is looming ahead of him. He proceeded to walk slowly past the entrance and the reception area and went straight towards the familiar destination that was his office.

He entered into his department's office feeling rather collected; he just needs to explain everything that has happened towards his captain while enduring the scolding and the paperwork that will most likely occur next.

He walked into the office to see that most of his co-workers had already been seated down on their seats. He did come in later than usual today after all, so it was honestly no surprise to see everyone's familiar faces within the office already, except for one.

Kagami still hasn't come in yet and Kuroko wouldn't be surprised if the latter had overslept after their escapade that had happened earlier on. After proceeding to mutter his greetings to the rest of his co-workers, Kuroko then sat down on his desk while booting up his monitor in order to start working in advance on his report for the incident, which he is sure he'll have to deal with sooner or later.

Kuroko was about to type in the first words into his report when suddenly he had heard a faint familiar scream coming just from outside of the office door. It seems like Kuroko wasn't the only one who had heard of the approaching screams as everyone else had silently looked up with mild confusion and bewilderment on their faces.

The screams got only louder and more frequent and Kuroko's face paled with silent dread as he then realized to whom the voice belongs to. The door was then barged open, revealing a very furious Hyuuga who came in with Kagami in tow, who's being pulled by his ears.

"Ow, ow, ow, please Hyuuga, captain! Have mercy!" Hyuuga didn't seem to care of the other's constant yell as he dragged Kagami towards his office.

Everyone else had looked on with wide eyes filled with mild shock and amusement at the situation before them, it wasn't an uncommon occurrence for Hyuuga to be mad at the redhead, but this was on a whole new level.

Unfortunately for Kuroko, Kagami had spotted him and proceeded to yell in a loud voice.

"Kuroko, help, please! Tell him that it was an accident! You were there with me too!"

Well, fuck, Kagami couldn't drop the bomb any worse than he just did, Kuroko thought with silent resignation as Hyuuga then proceeded to halt on his tracks suddenly, as his head whipped around to stare at the teal head with disbelief and fury written across his face. Kuroko proceeded to silently stare back at his captain with mild dread as Hyuuga then continued on his tracks without breaking eye contact with Kuroko while he points his other free hand at Kuroko's direction.

"_You_ are coming inside this office _right now_." Hyuuga gestured with his pointer finger moving from Kuroko and towards his office, before he then opened the door with a slam and threw Kagami inside of it as he kept on standing by his office's door, silently waiting for Kuroko to enter his private quarters.

Kuroko gave a soft sigh before he silently got up from his seat and walked towards the opened office. His captain watched with furious eyes as Kuroko walked past him and entered the secluded office. Hyuuga silently followed once the teal head was inside and closed off the door with a bang.

Kagami had already sat down on the chairs in front of Hyuuga's desk while looking rather meek and defeated as he waited with silent apprehension of the lectures that were about to come.

Kuroko went to sit beside Kagami while looking straight ahead as his captain then proceeded to take on his seat while levelling them both with a heated gaze that could burn an entire city down with rage.

His captain hadn't said anything, only staring at them both, which made it even worse since a silent Hyuuga is something to be feared of, even more than the angry and loud Hyuuga.

Kagami couldn't stand the silence and dread building up inside of him and so he had proceeded to mutter while bowing his head as far down as possible.

"Captain, we are really, really, sorry about what happened! It was an accident!" Hyuuga turned his eyes towards Kagami, before he then spoke with an alarmingly low voice.

"You, are telling me, that what happened was an _accident_?" Hyuuga didn't let Kagami answer his question as he proceeded to go into a rampage at the redhead's words instead.

"You have destroyed a government owned public property, in which we have to pay a sum of $10,000 just to cover for the damages, which had happened during a self-made mission that has not been approved by, nor been informed to the Society, and you are telling me that it was an _accident_?!" Hyuuga's enraged face was flushed as he spat and yelled the words out towards a very rattled Kagami.

Kuroko proceeded to speak with his quiet and calm voice, as Hyuuga is currently giving Kagami a death glare at the latter's earlier indignant words.

"Captain, if I may, can I explain the entire situation to you?" Hyuuga broke his silent intense glare from a rather relieved Kagami and turned his furious gaze towards Kuroko instead.

Kuroko kept his calm and cool façade while being stared down by the captain, who then slowly sighed and nodded his head silently for the other to continue.

"First of all, it was me who had asked for Kagami-kun's assistance for the mission of subjugating the demon inside that library. Kagami-kun was unwilling to participate at first because of the lack of concrete evidence, but I had insisted for him to come with me, due to the grave dangers which I had perceived of the situation. We then proceeded to enter the library at night, where there wouldn't be any civilians or witnesses around while we subdue the demon. Things had been going well for us, until the demon had proceeded to take on human form and reveal himself. We were forced to defend ourselves from his attacks by calling our familiars for assistance, while I tried to secretly subdue him by performing the sealing ritual. By the time the demon was sealed, there was nothing else we could have done to prevent the damage from happening. I am aware that it is entirely my fault that the situation had turned out the way it is, and I sincerely apologize for the trouble that we have caused to you and the Society."

Kuroko proceeded to bow his head towards his captain as he sat with silent dread and anticipation of the latter's reaction while Kagami had followed in Kuroko's actions and bowed his head as well.

Hyuuga stared at his underlings' bowed heads with mild exasperation and fury before he then slumped back in his seat and sighed to himself. It was no use getting mad at them, the destruction has already been done and there's nothing else that he could do about it except for demanding a proper report in regards of the case.

"I want a complete and detailed report of this entire mess of a case on my desk before lunch, and as much as I hate to admit it, at least you did something right by taking the initiative of sealing the demon down before it does any more damage." Kagami sighed with obvious relief at the positive words while Kuroko visibly tensed at the captain's last words before he then slowly looked up towards their captain's slightly calmed gaze with silent dread and apprehension at what he's about to reveal.

"Uh, about that captain…" Hyuuga then switched his eyes towards Kuroko with a mild questioning gaze while Kagami also turned his eyes and attention towards his friend sitting beside of him.

"Well, you see, I did seal him, but then the seal was broken when I reached my apartment, one thing led to another, and so I have made a contract with the demon." There was absolute silence for a moment following Kuroko's confession, it was so deafening that you could hear a pin drop, until there was a loud screeching sound of a chair being dragged back as Kagami then stood up from his seat abruptly while exclaiming with a loud booming voice.

"You _what_?! No seriously, what in the fucking hell, Kuroko?!" Kagami had stood up and looked down towards the teal head with wide disbelieving eyes and a gaping mouth at the other's declaration, while Hyuuga looked towards Kuroko with similar but less exaggerated expression.

Kuroko sighed before he then choose to silently reveal his silver summoning bracelet instead, and in there was the two gems of the familiars which he had procured, the brilliant cut yellow topaz, and the radiant cut emerald.

Hyuuga widened his eyes as he examined the gems; he has seen the yellow topaz before of course, and still it doesn't make it any less remarkable the more he stares at it, but what had really captured his attention was Kuroko's newly obtained emerald, even from the first glance he could tell that the demon residing inside of it was a very powerful one, the question is, just how on earth did Kuroko Tetsuya manage to get such a strong demon to willingly become his familiar.

Hyuuga silently thought of his options while Kagami was yelling and demanding for Kuroko's attention to which the latter had only regarded him with a soft sigh. Hyuuga then proceeded to raise his voice with annoyance, just so the redhead could shut up for one second and let him speak.

"Kagami, will you just be quiet?! Don't forget that you are still in my office right now, in which you are dismissed from, so start working on that damn report, I want it on my desk before lunch, if there's no report then there's no lunch for you, get it?" Kagami looked extremely dissatisfied at the entire situation and dismissal, but he conceded nevertheless.

He silently grumbled about the whole unbelievable ridiculousness of everything around him as he proceeded to get out of the office and close the door behind him.

Now that there is just Hyuuga and Kuroko left, the office seemed to be somewhat quieter and more serene, much to Hyuuga's relief, he already has a migraine forming in the back of his head from having to deal with the mess that his underlings have caused just last night, and having a loud yelling Kagami inside his office doesn't help to his situation.

First though, he needs to confirm something with the silent teal head in front of him, and he proceeded to stare and level Kuroko with a very serious gaze while muttering the words with a grave tone.

"Kuroko, are you sure it is safe to let that demon roam around freely, even as your familiar? Someone who can easily break an advanced demon seal shouldn't be taken lightly, and from the information that I've received from our sources, most of the damage identified within the library came from a single demonic origin." Hyuuga's eyes went to Kuroko's bracelet again at the last sentence. It was truly terrifying to know that a single demon can cause so much damage.

Hyuuga has seen a lot throughout his entire career as a demon hunter, he knows that demons are all dangerous creatures and should not be trifled with, however, the ones that Kuroko Tetsuya currently possessed was of a different level entirely.

Kuroko proceeded to gaze towards Hyuuga with determination and confidence within his eyes as he spoke with clear conviction in his collected voice.

"Captain, Hyuuga-kun, I can assure you that Midorima-kun won't hurt anyone else while under my supervision, he has given me his oath as my familiar and so I will ensure the safety of both him and everyone else, therefore please, I am begging you, let me have the right to watch over him as his summoner and as his master." Hyuuga stared at Kuroko's strong and convincing gaze with mild resignation.

He already knew the answer he would give to the teal head's words. Besides, it was probably the best thing he could do right now. If the demon himself was willing to serve a summoner, then it is better to let him be, rather than lock him up against his will within the headquarters while having to live with the possibility of him escaping.

"I am so done with this case and with the both of you; now get out of my office before I change my mind. And don't forget the damn reports." Hyuuga had given a wave of dismissal as he muttered the words with utter resignation while massaging his temples.

Kuroko smiled with all gratefulness towards his captain as he silently stood up and bowed down one last time before he then headed straight out of the office.

Now, all he needs to do is write his report before lunch while dealing with a very irate Kagami and trying to appease the red head by explaining the entirety of the incident that had happened after they have separated ways from the library.

* * *

_A/N_: Whew it's finally done, goddamn this chapter was also hard to write, I swear it only gets harder and harder by every chapter lol, on my defense though every chapter is also getting longer as I write it out, this one has 5,200 ish word count and I was like wtf lol, anyways on another note OMG KNB HAS ENDED *sobs with trails of ocean tears* seriously though I teared up reading that last chapter, so what do you guys think about the ending? Anyone dissatisfied by how the Rakuzan vs Seirin match ended?

Ooops, I'm rambling again, anyways THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR REVIEWS, FAVORITES, AND FOLLOWS, it means a lot to this noob author who had just barely started this whole writing drill, I really love waking up every day to new emails of favourites subscriptions and reviews, it really made my whole day brighter and much better and not to mention motivates me in writing more :)

Oh and if you want to chat with me more (lol im a freak though) the link to my fb is at my author's profile page, so please feel free to add me and all that, once again thank you for reading, this is the conclusion to Midorima's arc and the next chapter is the beginning of a dark new arc muhahahahaha *insert villain cackles* btw a lot of people have been asking me about the next GoM, I won't confirm anything cuz it'll take the fun and suspense out of it but I'll give you a hint (only if you ask me though) lol anyways enjoy and see you next time!


	6. Unjustified Feelings

**_Chapter 6 - Unjustified Feelings_**

Kuroko's apartment has gotten a lot noisier within the past week, he had realized.

Kise seems to appear unannounced more often now, and somehow Midorima seems to be on a silent match with the blonde, as he would also then follow the latter in appearing unannounced within Kuroko's small apartment, and then they would start to argue and throw insults at each other.

It was making Kuroko feel tired and rather fed up as he cannot even rest within his own home without having any kinds of interruptions.

On another note, Takao had taken towards visiting Kuroko's place more often now, as he doesn't have any work to do or a work place to go to.

The first time the raven head had called upon Kuroko, he had so jovially revealed that the library had to go under some kind of urgent renovations and that they were compensating him on a paid temporary leave.

While Kuroko was happy about Takao's situation he was actually slightly perplexed about the penchant that his friend had taken towards his familiars. They had met while Takao was visiting Kuroko's apartment in order to ask him out for lunch, while unfortunately, Kuroko was dealing with trying to make peace between his two bickering familiars.

The worst part is while the cheerful Kise seems to somewhat get along with the also cheerful Takao, Midorima however, was seething with pent up annoyance at the raven head's habit of calling him 'Shin-chan', and oddly Takao seemed to be more inclined towards the grudging Midorima instead, even if the latter had obviously voiced and acted out his distaste at having the other simply around him.

Kuroko had to hold his breath when Takao was making fun of 'Shin-chan's' way of ending his sentences with a 'nano-dayo' and his particular strange habit of carrying his 'lucky items' and covering his fingers with bandages. He swear, Takao likes to play with fire by the way he's acting around Midorima, and to make matters worse, Kise then would join in with Takao at making fun of the green head who would retort back with a sharp insult towards the blonde and then Kuroko had to mediate between them again just so they would stop fighting like five-year old children.

Kuroko walks into his office in the morning feeling rather exhausted, since last night Takao had taken him out for dinner and karaoke while also inviting Kuroko's two 'friends' along, and throughout the entire outing, he had to deal with a very drunk Takao and making sure he goes back home safely while also dealing with his bickering pair of familiars.

He was expecting yet another uninteresting day for today since Hyuuga had forbidden both Kagami and him from taking on anymore missions until the captain had deemed that they both have repented themselves properly since their last escapades. No mission usually means paperwork, and so, Kuroko can only sigh at the tedious task that awaits him.

Kuroko walked into his office while giving his morning greetings to Tsuchida and Mitobe which were already there. He was about to go towards his desk when Tsuchida then suddenly called out to him.

"Hey Kuroko, could you come here for a sec?" Kuroko looked towards Tsuchida who only smiled amiably at him while looking slightly apologetic.

Kuroko silently approached the latter before offering the ghost of a smile as he then proceeded to ask what the other had wanted with him.

"Is there anything I can help you with Tsuchida-kun?" Kuroko had asked the other while staring up with a neutral expression and a slight inquiry upon his eyes.

"Well, you see, we have three new members that have just joined recently, their training starts today and I was wondering if you could help with coaching them since you're one of the best summoners we currently have and you are also pretty good with explaining the techniques and all." Tsuchida had smiled apologetically as he spoke of his request towards the latter, who had only stared at the other with a silent understanding upon his face before he then replied with a soft smile.

"I see. I shall help with coaching them then Tsuchida-kun, besides it will be a good opportunity since I barely have any work to do, due to the captain having forbidden us to go out and do any missions." Kuroko had explained towards the other with a straight face and a slight monotone that reveals his boredom and slight annoyance at having nothing to do within the office.

Tsuchida had only laughed faintly at the teal head's revelation and proceeded to go into details of his request.

"Haha, well I'm glad that this opportunity came by then, and umm… Kagami had already arrived earlier and I have asked him to help with coaching the newcomers as well, I was also wondering if you could see how he is doing at the moment… they're just on the classroom on the floor above us." Kuroko gave an understanding smile towards Tsuchida as they then seemed to have shared the same silent thought, Kagami and coaching would not go really well, and so Kuroko better hurry towards aiding the redhead instead.

"I better take my leave then Tsuchida-kun, thank you for telling me." Kuroko gave a slight bow of his head before he then proceeded to go out of his office and headed towards the elevator.

He just hopes that he won't be too late in salvaging the situation before the redhead had lost his patience.

Kuroko was about to step into the elevator once it dings and opens its steel doors, only to bump roughly against someone from within. Kuroko had to regain his balance for a while before he then looked up and was about to apologize when an irritated voice had cut through his words.

"Tch, watch where you're going!" Kuroko had looked up towards the stone grey orbs of none other than the second founder of the Society himself, Hanamiya Makoto, who is looking as unpleasant as ever.

Hanamiya's eyes widened and lit up in recognition as he then met Kuroko's sky blue orbs and saw his signature teal hair. He proceeds to change his sour expression into a wicked condescending smirk instead before muttering the words out in a slow drawl that drips of sarcasm towards the silent teal head.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Kiyoshi's famous underling, what a pleasant surprise to see you here, made a name out of yourself last week didn't you, heard you barely survived through the ordeal. You might want to watch yourself, after all, whether it's genius or prodigy once it's broken, it's just _garbage_." Hanamiya's eyes narrowed with vicious intent before he then sneered and laughed towards himself with twisted amusement while walking past the silent teal head.

Kuroko didn't respond to his words, he had only silently stared forward at the elevator doors with a blank expression, nothing was betraying his thoughts, other than his tightly clenched trembling fists.

Kuroko stayed silent and didn't move for a while, even after Hanamiya was long gone and the elevator doors had closed itself on him. He was filled with unexpected fiery rage and indescribable cold fury.

Hanamiya Makoto is one of the most prominent and genius demon summoner and hunter. He is, in fact, one of the best within the entire Society, along with their other founder and boss, Kiyoshi Teppei. However, the two prodigies couldn't be any more different from each other.

While Kiyoshi Teppei has an honest and trusting personality, Hanamiya is the exact opposite of him. He is meticulous, manipulative and very malicious, although that wasn't always the well-known case when he had first joined in making the Society.

Hanamiya had been kind and gracious, as unbelievable as that is, and had been a good friend of Kiyoshi. Last year though, he had revealed his true colours when he and Kiyoshi went on a particularly dangerous covert mission in subduing a demon. Hanamiya had been rather careless and almost had his life taken away from him, and so, Kiyoshi went to save him, resulting in him taking on the particularly aggressive demon's attack instead, and as Kiyoshi was trapped by the demon, he had asked for Hanamiya's assistance only to be ignored while Hanamiya escaped from the situation with a smirk. Kiyoshi had lost his left leg during that incident and hadn't been able to summon his familiars ever since.

While it was widely known that Kiyoshi had lost his left leg within the failed mission, the true reason behind it was a tale that only a few people know about, including Kuroko and Kagami when they have accidentally overheard of Hyuuga's heated conversation with Kiyoshi.

It made Kuroko's blood boil, when he had found out the true reason as to why the person he had admired and thought of as a big brother had lost his leg and ability to summon his familiars, and the true reason behind his respected captain's rage and silent tears.

Hanamiya Makoto is the living proof that sometimes humans are worse than any kinds of demons, and Kuroko simply cannot forgive him for what he had done.

Kuroko took a long deep breath and sighed. It was no use getting angry right now; it'll only cloud his judgement and take away his composure. Besides, he has a job to do right now, and he better do it fast, since he had already taken too long while leaving the impatient Kagami alone in the coaching task.

Kuroko left the elevator and walked with slightly hurried steps towards the familiar destination of the classroom. He knocked twice before opening the door to see a very comforting sight of Kagami and three other people within a very intact classroom along with very neatly arranged desks and chairs.

Thank God he wasn't too late; Kuroko thought as he silently closed the door, while a very relieved Kagami then approached him with large steps.

"Kuroko! Glad to see you here! Help me please." Kagami had mumbled the last word in a silent whisper towards Kuroko who had only nodded towards Kagami as he then silently approached to the middle of the room before laying his eyes onto the three newcomers.

They appeared to be as confused and relieved as Kagami did, which meant that the lecturing hadn't been going so well, and that Kuroko's presence is apparently a much needed thing within that room, and so Kuroko then went to start his task by making a proper introduction first.

"Hello, my name is Kuroko Tetsuya. I am 17 years old. I am working as a demon hunter and summoner and am currently hired by the Society. It is a pleasure to meet you all." Kuroko proceeded to bow his teal head towards the three new faces of their team.

The three students then proceeds to introduce themselves to Kuroko with a polite and slightly enthusiastic manner.

"My name is Furihata Kouki. I am 17 years old and currently in training to be a demon summoner and hunter." Furihata smiled and bowed politely towards Kuroko as another apprentice then introduces himself after.

"I am Kawahara Koichi, 17 as well, and also training to be a demon hunter and summoner." Kawahara bowed and scratched his bald head awkwardly before smiling at Kuroko as the last member then proceeds to introduce himself.

"Fukuda Hiroshi, I am 17 years old and my parents were demon hunters and summoners. I have come here to learn and follow in their steps." Fukuda seemed to be more enthusiastic as he then proceeded to bow with such speed Kuroko was almost afraid he'd sprain his neck before looking back up at Kuroko again with shining eyes.

Kuroko acknowledged their introductions with a soft smile before getting on with the lessons.

"It is nice to meet you Furihata-kun, Kawahara-kun, and Fukuda-kun. Now let's get on to the training shall we, so what were you all learning about when I had first come in?" Kuroko had inquired towards the three and a silently standing and watching Kagami who had all tensed as they try to find the words to say to Kuroko.

"Uhh, well that…" Kawahara had mumbled as he glanced surreptitiously towards a frowning Kagami while smiling sheepishly before the latter then met his gaze and glared sharply towards him which made him gulp and avert his eyes silently in his seat.

Kuroko saw their interaction and proceeded to sigh out loud before deciding that they were getting nowhere and that he probably shouldn't have asked the question in the first place.

"Kagami-kun please sit down, I can take care of things from now on. As for you three, I am sure that you have learnt the very basics of demon hunting and summoning, however I am going to go through it again while trying to keep it as summarized as possible." Kagami had grumbled silently before he then sat down between the three empty chairs at the very front desk while watching Kuroko with a begrudging look as Kuroko then proceeds to take charge of the class.

Kuroko approached the white board while grabbing the black marker as he then started to explain and write the key points of the lecture at the board while the four watched him, giving him their silent attention.

"While demon summoning and demon hunting seems like an entirely different topic, they actually correlate with each other. First of all, demons are creatures that came to our human world from an entirely different plane, and to come to our world they need to have a single vessel. The vessel in which they have all chosen in common is in the form of stones, varying from rough common stones usually occupied by weaker demons towards polished rare gemstones in which higher level demons tends to occupy. Therefore, identifying the types of gems is one of the very first and basic key knowledge that you should have all learned in order to become a demon summoner and hunter." Kuroko proceeded to write some key words on the board while the trio newcomers watched with silent admiration and have their full attention directed on the teal head.

Kagami hate to admit it but Kuroko is way better at this theoretical shit than he is, and so, he stayed silent while also watching the lesson and relearning half what he had already learnt, since the other half of the lessons he had slept through in class.

Kuroko continued on with his lecture once he saw a light of understanding within everyone's eyes.

"Before you learn the ways of becoming a demon hunter, you must first familiarize yourself with what you are fighting against, and that leads us to learn more about demons and the nature of their existence within our world. Just like how every human is different, every demon also has their own differences which set them apart from each other. While some demons are violent and needs to be sealed and exorcised, others have been known to possess self-control and have been aiding us humans in eliminating the threats that plague our world. This brings us to learn about the contract formation that a demon can have with a human summoner."

Kuroko proceeded to write the word 'contract' in capital letters while making a dot point down the bottom of it, before he then glanced towards his audience to confirm that they are following him before proceeding to continue with his explanation again.

"First of all, a contract can only be formed when a summoner has obtained or been given the vessel stone or gem of the demon, while the demon then proceeds to seal the contract by revealing their true name and giving their oath to serve the summoner. Once the contract has been established and sealed they will last for a lifetime, usually until the summoner's death, therefore demons will never reveal their true name towards someone who they deem is weaker and unworthy of their service. Since most demons have a very high pride and dignity in regards of their own being, it is important to fully learn of your own abilities before you ask or approach any demon to form a contract with you, as they can get very violent and will not hesitate in hurting you if they deem you are looking down on them and their abilities to your own level. Demons will only serve those that they have fully acknowledged in regards of strength and capabilities."

Kuroko looked back towards his audience again to see that they were all silently listening and giving him their full attention, which surprisingly, includes Kagami as well. Kuroko gave the ghost of a smile before he then proceeded to continue his lesson again.

"Every summoner is gifted with spiritual energy in order to be able to use spells and perform rituals and most importantly in order to summon their own demon familiars. A demon summoner must know fully well of their own spiritual energy limit, it is very important to recognize your own strengths and limitations especially during missions. If a summoner is depleted of their spiritual energy not only they are unable to create spells and perform rituals, they also cannot summon their familiars, as the summoning process requires enough spiritual energy to maintain them within this world as well. In worst cases, depletion of a summoner's spiritual energy can also affect their physical wellbeing. Some are known to be fatal."

Kuroko finishes writing down his points on the board as he then silently put the marker down and turned around to face his audience again while levelling them with a calm gaze.

"Any questions so far?" Everyone had remained silent until Furihata then raised his hands above his head silently as he stared at Kuroko with a timid and eager gaze.

Kuroko proceeded to nod towards Furihata to let him speak before the latter then spoke with a meek and quiet voice.

"Umm, Kuroko-san, can you show me how to summon a demon?" The question had been unexpected and so Kuroko could only gaze at the silently eager and waiting Furihata for a while before he then silently nodded his head.

"Very well, I will show you how to summon a demon. While the process isn't too difficult it requires concentration and physical effort, and you need to know the demon summoning spell before you are able to summon them. Make sure you watch carefully." The three apprentices' faces had brightened significantly at the positive confirmation of Kuroko's words as they then proceed to lean forward in their seats while watching Kuroko with shared eager gazes.

Kuroko took a deep breath before he then closed his eyes and reveal his silver summoning bracelet on his left hand, which had been raised forward, as he then proceed to utter the familiar words from the back of his head.

"I call upon thee, he of the netherworld and spawn of the Devil, heed my call and appear upon my words, Sagaciter." A bright light surrounds the room as soon as the words are uttered and everyone had closed their eyes in reflex before the light then faded away, revealing a silently standing Midorima who had proceeded to fix his glasses with his left hand while holding a teapot with his right as he then turned his gaze towards Kuroko.

"You called?" Kuroko then gave a soft apologetic smile towards Midorima before bowing slightly towards the green head while replying his words.

"I am very sorry Midorima-kun. I was just showing the class on how to summon a demon as they are currently learning on demon summoning techniques." Midorima's face was stern and cold, however his words and voice has shown that he didn't mind it as much as he wanted them to think.

"Hmph, it can't be helped. I shall stay here until the lesson is over." Midorima then proceeded to sit on one of the three seats at the very front, which unfortunately was right next to Kagami.

Kagami had stared at Midorima's teapot with incredulity before he then gave a silent glare at the green head who had returned the gesture with a cold gaze of his own while he proceeds to sit down silently.

Midorima is aware of the curious and awe-struck gazes thrown at him from the other occupants within the room as he had silently basked in the attention thrown at him and proceeded to ignore it.

Kuroko is preparing to continue with his lesson once everyone had settled down and was about to pick up his marker again when another bright light had then covered the entire room and made everyone within the vicinity cover their eyes at the suddenness of it.

As the light then faded away, the blonde demon named Kise Ryouta is standing in its place while sporting a pout on his face as he then proceeded to charge at Kuroko before throwing his arms around the teal head in a tight hug while rubbing his cheeks against Kuroko's and wailing with a loud voice.

"Kuroko-cchi, why didn't you summon me instead?! I was waiting for you to summon me~!" Kuroko could only wonder why this was his life before he then proceeded to tap the blonde's arm that was hugging him tightly while scolding him with a monotone voice.

"Kise-kun, please don't appear unannounced. I am currently in the middle of teaching a class, so please be quiet and sit down." Kise only pouted deeper at Kuroko's silent treatment of him before he then released his master and went to sit down at the last seat in the very front, on the other side of Kagami, while Midorima gave him a silent displeased glare from across.

Kagami was already used to Kise's habit of popping up randomly, and so, he had only sighed at the addition to their little lesson, but the rest of the room who had only just barely learned about demon summoning was silently gaping with shock and wonder.

It was Kawahara who had voiced his thoughts out loud once he had regained his composure again.

"Wow! Kuroko-sensei! How did you do that?! I mean, your familiar! He just, like, popped out of nowhere! Is that a new trick to demon summoning? If so can you please teach us?" Kuroko met the eager gazes that the trio apprentices had given him and sighed wearily, this is why he didn't want to summon Kise, because the other loves to make a spectacle out of himself.

First though, he needs to clear up this misunderstanding that Kise's unintended appearance had caused towards his students.

"There is no such trick to demon summoning. Kise-kun is just one very odd familiar that likes to appear unannounced." Kuroko had said the facts with his monotone voice while Kise then wailed out loud at his master's words.

"So cruel, Kuroko-cchi! I am not odd!" Kagami proceeded to snicker towards himself while Midorima had given a scoff and a silent smirk at Kuroko's words as Kise then throw them both a menacing glare that is contradictory towards his cheerful and sunny personality.

Kuroko sighed before he then approached the board and was about to continue the interrupted lesson, when suddenly, there was a knock on the door before it was then opened, revealing a smiling Koganei instead.

"Kuroko, Kagami! You guys are wanted in the office by the captain. You three newbies come with me!" Koganei had relayed the message before gesturing towards the three apprentices with his hands while smiling brightly in his cat-like manner.

Kagami had furrowed his brows in silent thought at Koganei's words before he then voiced out his question towards the latter.

"What does the captain want with us?"

Koganei turned to look towards Kagami before replying him with a contemplating voice.

"Dunno, but it seems to be something serious, Riko and Kiyoshi is already waiting inside the office as well."

Kuroko and Kagami had both silently widened their eyes at this as they ponder over the matter while the three apprentices quietly filed out of the room one by one, but not before they gave a silent goodbye nod and wave towards both Kuroko and Kagami as they left with the smiling Koganei.

Once the room was left to the four of them Kagami then moved his serious gaze towards Kuroko as he then asked the latter for his thoughts on the matter.

"Kuroko, what do you think it's about?" Kuroko stayed silent while the other three men were silently gazing at him and waiting for his response.

Kuroko then looked up towards Kagami with a neutral expression, although the slight furrow between his brows reveals his confusion towards the situation as well.

"I don't know Kagami-kun, in any case, let's hurry towards the office." Kuroko then gestured for his familiars to follow him as well before they then leave the room and proceeds towards their destination.

* * *

Kuroko and Kagami had entered their office while Midorima and Kise followed closely behind, for once they were not arguing at all today and stayed silent throughout their walk towards the captain's office.

Kuroko gave everyone within their main office a silent greeting nod as he and Kagami continued on their steps towards the secluded captain's office without stopping.

Kise and Midorima silently followed their master while ignoring the obvious stares everyone else was directing at them.

Kagami proceeded to knock the door twice as he then heard a faint gruff response from inside to enter before he silently opened the door.

Kagami entered first while Kuroko and his familiars filed in to the office after him.

While it is Kise and Midorima's first time to be actually inside the office, they had already familiarized themselves of the entire layout of the room from Kuroko's occasional visitations inside of it while they were within their gemstones. After all, demons can still choose to witness the outside world's events even when they are resting inside of their own vessel and sanctuary.

Kise proceeded to silently close the door behind him as he was the last one to go in, before he then went on to stand with Kuroko and the rest.

Like Koganei had said, Kiyoshi and Riko were already within the office and sitting down on the seats right in front of Hyuuga's desk. They seemed to have been discussing something serious from their grave expressions and the way that Riko had her glasses on while holding a pile of documents within her hands as she studied them over without breaking her concentration.

Kiyoshi had looked up at Kuroko and Kagami's entrance and had managed to greet them with a large grin while also nodding his head and smiling politely towards Kuroko's two familiars.

Hyuuga had also turned his head up towards his underlings' entrance and had widened his eyes when he saw the two new faces which he immediately recognized as demonic species. From their aura and their overwhelming presence he had deemed them to be Kuroko's familiars, but what had really caught his attention was something else.

"What's with that teapot?" Hyuuga had managed to voice out his bewilderment and curiosity towards the item in which one of Kuroko's familiars was holding within his hand.

Midorima only stood tall before proceeding to fix his glasses while levelling Hyuuga with a straight gaze as he then proceed to explain about his lucky item of the day.

"This teapot is my horoscope's lucky item for the day. Cancers are ranked 4th today and so I have to carry my lucky item with me to maximise my full luck and potential for the day." Hyuuga and the rest of the room, who has never seen Midorima's antics, had only looked blankly towards the green head standing in front of them while trying to comprehend what the latter had said.

Kise had managed to laugh at Midorima's detailed explanation which had earned a menacing glare from the latter who was about to retort with something sharp before Kuroko then interrupted him, in favour of not having to mediate between their fights again, while asking Hyuuga of why their presence were required.

"Captain, why have you called for us?" Hyuuga then seemed to remember the real purpose of the meeting, before he went back into his business mode again and proceed to level a serious gaze towards both Kuroko and Kagami.

"Right, we have a mission for you, _both of you_. This mission requires absolute teamwork and precaution. We're dealing with the mafia after all." Hyuuga had said with all seriousness of his voice while Kagami stared at the captain with absolute attentiveness at his grave words.

Kuroko kept his expression blank while discerning everything that has been said before he then speaks again when Hyuuga choose to remain silent after uttering the words.

"Captain, what kind of mission do you have for us?"

Hyuuga then sighed as he stared at both of his underlings with a frown while his eyes held something akin to doubt and concern, before he then abruptly turned to Kiyoshi to utter his thoughts.

"Kiyoshi, I still think it's not a good idea to let them go, especially after what happened last time." Hyuuga's eyes held something fragile for a slip of a second as he then silently glanced at Kiyoshi's prosthetic leg before raising his eyes to meet the latter's gaze again.

"Now, now, Hyuuga, there's no helping it is there? Besides I believe in Kuroko and Kagami. They're strong enough to handle the task ahead of them." Kiyoshi then turned his head towards the two underlings with a soft smile and fondness in his gaze.

Kagami looked surprised and wary at their conversation while Kuroko visibly frowned before straightening his expression back to its neutral state again.

Kuroko have a foreboding feeling that whatever it is their captain wants to discuss with them is going to be a very important and dangerous task for the latter to be so doubtful and concerned about their safety.

Riko who had been silently reading her documents then proceeds to put them down while frowning with obvious impatience at the conversation that is happening before her, as she then raised her voice while giving an annoyed look towards Kiyoshi and Hyuuga.

"Calm down, both of you, now Kagami and Kuroko…" She then turned her sharp gaze towards the latter two while having an ominous smile on her face as she silently got up from her seat and approached the two simultaneously before she then raise her hands and grip them both very tightly on their shoulders.

"First of all, how dare you two brats go on a self-proclaimed mission and destroy a public property, while making us owe $10,000 just for the damages caused, do you know how much pain I have to go through just to keep you both from being arrested by the law? Hmm?" Riko still had that smile on her face while Kagami and Kuroko were withering under the painful hold she has on their shoulders.

Midorima and Kise had watched silently with wide eyes at the scene that is unfolding in front of them while having shared the same silent bewilderment and amusement.

"Ow, ow, ow, I'm sorry! I'm sorry, Coach!" Kagami had yelped loudly towards the silently smiling female as the hold on his shoulders then tightened even more.

While Riko is now a capable lawyer, she used to be their physical training coach in order to ensure that their body is fit and well developed enough to go on the dangerous missions. After all, missions not only require absolute mental strength but also physical as well if you wanted to survive everything that is thrown at you.

Riko proceeded to glare menacingly at both of them before she then decided to release them and went back towards her seat while levelling both of the underlings one last stern look as she spoke with a warning tone within her voice.

"You better be sorry, or I'll put you in a Boston Crab Hold next time…" Kagami shuddered at the threat of his former coach's favourite form of torture while Kuroko is rubbing his shoulder silently to ease the pain.

Riko proceeded to pick up her papers again before she then levelled them with an intense gaze and spoke with a voice that speaks of seriousness only.

"This mission can only be done by the both of you, and so, Junpei go and explain it to them properly this time." Riko turned her gaze next towards her childhood friend and now fiancée, as Hyuuga then obeyed her words and proceeded to clear his throat before speaking towards his underlings again.

"Umm, yes, anyways… We're dealing with a secret black-market auction that is sponsored and held by the mafia; it'll be under the guise of a party with high-ranking officials and politicians attending it." Hyuuga told them as the previous gravity of the situation is sinking back into his voice.

Kagami had furrowed his eyebrows in the silent weight of unease that Hyuuga's words have caused as he then voiced his thoughts out loud.

"So what's the deal?"

Hyuuga then continued his words while proceeding to look over the documents that Riko had handed over to him.

"Normally, this won't be any of our business, but one of our sources has retrieved information about the listings of the auction, and amongst all of the other items there, a gem will be on for bidding. Unfortunately, our source can't exactly tell us more than that, so we don't know what we're dealing with."

Hyuuga then put the documents down as he then furrowed his brows deeper into a frown while staring straight at Kagami's and Kuroko's eyes before speaking again.

"Basically, I want you both to participate in the auction and check whether the said gem is going to pose any danger and if it does pose a threat then I want you both to contain and eliminate it."

Kagami and Kuroko had both nodded in understanding at the words spoken towards them, now there is just one last thing for them to confirm to their captain, as Kagami then proceeded to ask another question again.

"So where and when exactly will we be going on this mission?"

Hyuuga then sighed before he looked towards both of his underlings' eyes to see if there are any hesitations within them only to see none, and so he continued with his words.

"This will be an undercover mission, there'll be no back-up provided by the Society nor will there be any opportunity to call for one. You will be completely secluded and isolated while performing this mission since the auction is taking place inside of a ship, to be precise, the grand cruiser S. S. Teikou."

Kagami and Kuroko widened their eyes at the revelation, this mission has just gotten even more dangerous than they can imagine, and worse, they have no one to rely on but themselves.

Riko slowly got up from her seat again while clutching two pairs similar documents that seemed to be proof of identity and two tickets towards both Kagami and Kuroko who had taken them in silence while slowly looking over them.

"These are your tickets and your fake identity. You have three days before the ship sails, prepare yourselves."

* * *

A/N: THANK YOU FOR YOUR REVIEWS FOLLOWS AND FAVORITES AS ALWAYS I CAN'T SAY ENOUGH ABOUT THIS :) and before you guys hate on me for this chapter, I know it is mostly just a filler chapter with seemingly unrelated stuff and all but HONESTLY they relate to the plot later on, so please don't kill me just yet while I try my best to write and unravel everything lol.

On another note, a lot of people have been reviewing my stories and complimenting them which had made me tear up with absolute feels, but some had also said that I made some mistakes on my grammar and stuff to which they didn't elaborate, SO PLEASE I AM BEGGING YOU IF I MADE ANY KINDS OF MISTAKE ON GRAMMAR OR ANYTHING ELSE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE POINT THEM OUT TO MEEEEEE, as I have said countless of times before I am a noob author this is my first time writing in 10 years and English is NOT my first language so please help me guys! Just point whatever you think I did wrong to me so I can FIX IT. I really need this lol

And on another less important side note, I was talking to my dad on phone chat and I told him I was writing a story (my parents live in a different country so it's just me and my sis) my dad was all like oh cool sweetie where do you write them, I was like ffn lol, and he's like what's your pen name I'm like Cinzay, he's like ok, and then I went back to writing again cuz I didn't think he'd do anything with that information, to my surprise though he actually looked me up and said I'm going to read your story, and all the blood drained from my face, I mean like oh shit I'm sitting here writing about naked guys in showers and shit and my dad is going to read?! LOL I was panicked for a moment there lmao I had to convince him to not read my story because he won't get it and the characters are from anime which he does not watch lol. Seriously though my heart nearly stopped for a sec there lol everything turned out good though even though I'm still kinda jittery if he actually choose to read this or not lol. Seriously though dad, don't. lol

Anyways I think I rambled enough so I'll see you guys next chapter as always I hope you'd continue to support me and look forward for the next chapters to come, don't worry the ball is already rolling so the action scenes are going to start soon ;) Ciao!


	7. Russian roulette

**_Chapter 7 – Russian roulette_**

"No, I absolutely refuse Kagami-kun." Kuroko had said for the millionth time during that day while Kagami had then sighed in exasperation before repeating the same sentence again.

"But we don't have any choice, do we?" Kagami and Kuroko then proceed to go into another stare down again for the millionth time that day while standing in front of a large, very prominent and famous high-class boutique.

The two of them had been arguing in that very same manner for almost half an hour now while passer-by's were staring at them with utter bewilderment and throwing them dirty side glances.

They continued their silent stare down until Kagami then sighed and palmed his face with his hands before looking back down towards Kuroko's stubborn gaze again.

This is getting nowhere, he had deemed with utter resignation before he then tried to find the right words to say to Kuroko in order to convince the other of the obvious solution to their situation.

"Look, Kuroko… We seriously have no damn choice, this isn't what I want either but it is part of the damn job, we're gonna have to dress up as much as none of us want to."

"I understand that Kagami-kun, but I am _not_ dressing up as a female." Kuroko had said for the umpteenth time, since they had both received their mission description yesterday.

Apparently, Hyuuga and Riko had left out one very particular detail out of their mission requirements yesterday, which is, the fact that their fake identity requires them to act as a pair of high society married couple, in short, one of them is going to have to dress up as a female in order to act as the wife.

Kagami sighed again before he then uttered the next words slowly like he's trying to soothe a petulant child instead.

"Kuroko it's not that I don't want to help you, but there's no one else that can pull this off, please work with me here."

Kuroko only proceeded to frown deeply while staring back at Kagami with a defiant and stubborn gaze before uttering the next words as slowly as Kagami did.

"Kagami-kun, if you're so insistent on having me dressed up as a female then why don't you do it yourself instead?"

Kagami sighed loudly before ruffling his hair and uttering the next words with impatience and obvious frustration.

"Do I look like I'm gonna be able to pull off as a Mrs. Hayashi to you?"

Kuroko had only silently stared towards Kagami's 190 cms tall and bulky body, to be honest Kuroko knows that it is impossible to expect anyone to see Kagami as a female no matter how good of a dress or makeover they put on him, if they have dresses his size that is.

Still though, Kuroko is a _man_ himself, and he will not be reduced to dressing up as a female no matter how many times Kagami will beg him to.

They were going to argue endlessly about the matter again when a female store clerk then suddenly called out to them from within the store's glass doorway.

"Excuse me sirs, is there anything I can help you with?" The female blonde clerk had looked towards both of them with a smile although her gestures seemed rather wary of the strangers that had been bickering outside her store for a good thirty minutes now.

Kagami and Kuroko had both looked up from their stare down towards the female clerk when Kagami then proceeded to clear his throat before speaking.

"Oh, we're very sorry. We were just trying to decide on what to wear for a party."

The store clerk seemed to relax at Kagami's assuring words before she then put on her brightest business smile and gestured for the two of them to come in the store.

"Oh, I can help you with choosing your attire if you want, please do come in and make yourselves comfortable!"

Kagami and Kuroko had no choice but to silently follow the store clerk in as she proceed to led them towards the suits section of the store before she then turned to them and start explaining the merchandises.

"These are the male's suits section, is there anything that you're looking for in particular? Maybe something like a formal business type suit or more like a casual type of outfit?"

"Uhh, well we're going to a formal party, so I'll probably take the formal one. Oh, and please help me choose something that I can easily move in." Kagami had said the last sentence on a whim as he then remembered why they were going to the party in the first place. After all, he didn't want his own attire to limit him during combat, in case they needed to take action or fight.

The store clerk then smiled and silently nodded in confirmation before she proceeds to choose one of the suits which she had deemed was Kagami's size and will suit the occasion.

"How about this one sir? The material is smooth and silky so it won't be too stiff to wear and it'll be easy for you to move around in, plus it suits for formal occasions."

Kagami proceeded to nod at whatever the clerk had picked for him. He didn't pay much attention to the design, because he doesn't give a shit anyways, he'll probably only wear it once in the entirety of his life and then stash it somewhere where he won't even remember within his closet.

The female clerk then nodded with satisfaction at Kagami's confirmation before she then turned her attention towards Kuroko instead and proceeded to ask him the same question.

"And what about you sir, do you want anything in particular?" The clerk had then turned towards Kuroko while silently waiting for his opinion.

Kuroko was about to answer for himself when suddenly Kagami had cut through Kuroko's sentence in a hurry.

"Oh, um, well, he won't be needing one, we'll need a dress for his sister instead, twin sister, she's not here at the moment but she's going to go to the party with me."

Kuroko had only looked towards Kagami with wide eyes that showed his utter disbelief at what the latter had just said.

The store clerk widened her eyes for a moment before she then smiled brightly again towards Kagami with mischievous twinkles in her eyes.

"Oh, that's so sweet of you! I get it, you're going to buy the dress as a surprise for her, it's so nice of you to go as far as taking her twin brother's opinion for that, I wish my boyfriend was as considerate as you." She then giggled before she started moving towards another section across the shop while gesturing for Kagami and Kuroko to follow her steps.

Kuroko voiced out his displease at what Kagami had said in a low voice as they were walking within a distance so the store clerk wouldn't notice.

"Kagami-kun, since when did you have the permission to make decisions on my behalf?"

Kagami had glanced towards Kuroko's direction with pleading eyes before he then replied with a low whisper towards Kuroko's demand as to not raise suspicion while he was walking in sync to the teal head's steps.

"Look, I'm really sorry Kuroko. I swear to God it'll be just one night, one goddamn night, just for this mission. I'll treat you to a month's worth of vanilla milkshakes once we get back. So please, bear with me."

Kuroko had to stay silent after that as they have then reached their destination which was the female dresses section of the store.

The store clerk then looked towards them with a bright smile while proceeding to ask Kagami on the specifics of the dress which he was looking for.

"So, what type of dress would you want for her? Something elegant or simple?"

Kagami didn't have to think much before he replied towards her enquiry with certainty.

"Uhh, I'll go for simple. Oh, and please also choose something easy for her to move in. She's not used to wearing dresses."

Kuroko had to subtly roll his eyes at the last sentence. Yeah, of course he's not used to wearing dresses; he's a man for God's sake.

It wasn't like Kuroko had accepted the idea of him dressing up as a female, but he knew Kagami also didn't have any choice in the matter either, and he knew that they were getting nowhere if neither one of them relented in the situation. And so, Kuroko could only sigh and bear with it.

The clerk had smiled with understanding on her face upon Kagami's words before she then proceed to ask another question.

"Okay so, simple, and what is her dress size?"

Okay, Kagami did not expect this question. He was flustered for a second before he then glanced towards Kuroko subtly while pretending to think deeply before answering.

"Umm, well… I hadn't really paid attention to her exact size but, umm, she has a similar build with her twin brother here, like really similar, not that much difference, so whatever fits him will probably fits her too." The store clerk proceeds to widen her eyes with uncertainty at the vague information she had just received before she then silently gazed towards Kuroko's direction while examining him closely.

Kuroko had to resist the urge to smack himself on the face. No, seriously though, why was this his life, what higher entity had he offended to be in this kind of situation.

The store clerk then smiles reassuringly towards Kagami before she then proceeds to speak towards him with an understanding tone.

"Okay, I will try my best in choosing the right size for her." She said as she then walks away from the two in order to choose a dress from the racks.

The store clerk then came back with two dresses; one was a bright silver colour while the other was a dark royal blue. She then lay the dresses neatly on the sofas that they have within the store before proceeding to turn her gaze towards the two and asking them of their opinion.

"I have chosen two dresses which I think would suit her and is also easy for her to move in, what do you think sirs?" Kagami had looked towards the dresses and remained silent for a while as he then try to choose between them both.

While he doesn't actually give a shit on appearances, he knows that Kuroko will kill him if he made the wrong choice and choose something too revealing or something that will feminize the latter. And so he had to choose carefully in order to appease the already pissed teal head.

Kagami had looked towards the silver dress and stared at it for a while, while the design is simple and nice, it is extremely revealing and the chest is too low cut to be safe, plus it has a really short skirt.

Yup, Kuroko will kill him if he chooses that one for the latter. He proceeds to dismiss the silver dress from his choice.

He then silently examined the next dress, which is the dark royal blue evening dress. The design on the dress is also simple, and the dress isn't too revealing on the chest, instead it proceeds to cover the entire chest area while choosing to take a low cut off the shoulders. The skirt isn't as short as the other one either; it's slightly longer reaching just above the knee area while having a tiny slit on the side so the dress is easier to walk and manoeuvre in.

And so, Kagami then settled with his choice.

"I'll take the blue one, thanks." The store clerk seemed to be happy with Kagami's choice as she then proceeds to take the silver gown back towards the racks while keeping the navy blue one within her arms along with Kagami's suit.

They proceed to purchase the suit and dress with the card that the Society had given them to cover for their mission expenses and managed to finally head out of the store with two bags of formal wear.

Now, they just need to buy their shoes.

* * *

Kuroko went home in the evening feeling very exhausted and worn out.

Not only he had to get dragged around in hunting for proper formal wear, he also had to deal with the fact that he was going to wear female attire towards their mission.

The whole thing was making his head hurt and he just wanted to go back to his bed and get some rest.

Kuroko proceeded to unlock the door to his apartment before he then stepped in his threshold and removed his shoes.

He walked in and was greeted with the pitter patter of footsteps while Nigou approached him from inside.

"Hey Nigou, I'm sorry for coming home late, I'll bring out your food soon, so please wait for me in the kitchen will you?" Kuroko had said towards his puppy who only replied back with an 'arf!' before the pitter patter of footsteps went towards the kitchen instead.

Kuroko managed to smile softly at his malamute puppy's understanding before stepping inside and heading towards his bedroom to stash the shopping bags which he had managed to procure today.

He proceeds to head towards the kitchen and prepared Nigou's food before he then opened his fridge and was thinking on what to have for dinner himself.

He is tired as hell but he knows he needs to eat, especially since the mission is only two days away now, he'll need to take care of his own health and make sure that he doesn't bring Kagami down in the mission.

Kuroko sighed as he looked over his fridge, he was about to grab some frozen lasagne to microwave when a bright light suddenly surrounded the entire kitchen.

Kuroko wasn't as surprised anymore at the sudden appearance of Kise Ryouta in his kitchen. The latter had been appearing unannounced too often within the last week for Kuroko to even pay any mind to it.

Kise proceeds to stand beside Kuroko and smiled as brightly as the sun before he then speaks towards the latter with his usual cheerful tone.

"Kuroko-cchi~ I missed you! Why didn't you call for me today? I could've helped you with choosing your dress." Kuroko's eyebrows twitched at Kise's last words before he then choose to shuffle past the blonde and went towards his microwave instead.

Kise pouted as his master ignores him before he saw what Kuroko was holding within his hands and proceeds to frown instead.

"Kuroko-cchi, you have to eat something healthy! It won't be good for your body if you keep on eating instant food!" Kise waved his hands frantically while trying to get Kuroko to listen to him.

Kuroko sighed before he then turned to look towards Kise and, just to spite him for his words, proceeded to press the on button for his microwave while staring straight at Kise's amber eyes.

Kuroko was tired and he doesn't care what he eats, as long as he eats it and then go to bed.

Unfortunately for Kuroko, another bright light then surrounds the kitchen, making both Kise and Kuroko to shut their eyes while waiting for the light to disappear. Once the light fades, standing between them both was Midorima with his usual stern look as he was wearing a pink polka-dot 'KUMA' apron, which is assumed to be his lucky item for the day, over his attire and fixing his glasses with his bandaged left hand.

Midorima proceeds to fix his gaze towards Kuroko instead as he then spoke with his usual apathetic tone, although this time it is tinged with slight disapproval.

"As much as I hate to agree with the noisy demon, he is right. Kuroko you need to take care of your own health and eat proper nutritious food. It won't be good for your body if you keep your current diet up."

Kise choose to ignore Midorima's insult of him in favour of nodding vigorously at Midorima's supporting words while staring at Kuroko with his frown and puppy dog eyes.

Kuroko palmed his face as he met both of his familiar's disapproving gazes at his meal. Out of all the times for them to actually get along and not fight for once, it just had to be now.

Kuroko knew that they only meant well though and so he could only sigh loudly as he proceeds to press the off button on his microwave grudgingly.

No lasagne for dinner then, he thought while taking the instant food out of the microwave and walking past both of his familiars to put it back in the fridge while looking at whatever else he has that is 'healthier' to eat and will obtain the approval of his two fussing familiars.

Kise and Midorima seemed to be happy at Kuroko's choice to abandon his lasagne while they then proceed to go stand next to Kuroko's side in order to see what the latter have in his fridge.

Kuroko still have a decent amount of food and ingredients from his last trip to the supermarket; it's just that he really doesn't feel like cooking right now.

Midorima proceeds to stare at the ingredients within the fridge and choose to reach out his hands past Kuroko's shoulders and grabbed at some meat, a couple of potatoes and vegetables before heading towards the kitchen counter and proceeding to open the shelves for proper cooking utensils.

Kuroko and Kise widened their eyes at Midorima's actions as he then start to dice the meat skilfully with professional speed before preparing it for stewing.

Midorima's gaze then turned to Kuroko as he spoke with his usual strictness while preparing the dish.

"Kuroko, could you start preparing the rice for the stew? It won't be too long until it's done."

Kuroko had managed to silently nod at Midorima's request before he then went to his rice cooker and starts to prepare the steamed rice.

Kise was watching Midorima with widened eyes before he then gazed towards the latter with something akin to admiration and respect and proceeded to smile brightly.

"Midorima-cchi! Where did you learn to cook like that? Please teach me how to do it as well!"

Midorima frowned deeply at the new nickname which Kise had just given him before he then silently glared at the latter who was unfazed by the hostile treatment he had just gotten from the green head.

"First of all, do not call me with that ridiculous nickname, and secondly, I have learned the basic skills of cooking from my countless hours of research within the libraries of the human world." Midorima silently fixed his glasses while stirring the stew with his left hand as he replied the blonde without taking his eyes off the cooking.

Kuroko joined in their conversation after he had finished with his task of preparing the rice as he then silently stood next to Midorima while watching him doing his task.

"Midorima-kun, could it be that was the reason why you hide your gem within the book?"

Midorima proceeds to answer the question thrown at him as he silently starts to insert the diced potatoes and vegetables inside the stew.

"Hmph, I find humans to be distasteful, but I find the countless scrolls and books that they have gathered throughout the ages to be quite interesting. I only seek for knowledge within this world and that is why I have spent most of my time secretly hiding within the sanctuary of the book while travelling across the world, that is, until I met you."

Midorima turned his gaze towards Kuroko as he finishes his sentence while Kuroko silently widened his eyes by a fraction before meeting the other's gaze right back with calm and clear orbs.

Yes, those were the eyes which had intrigued and captivated Midorima's attention, those eyes that were as clear as still water and yet holds a mysterious depth to them.

"Kuroko Tetsuya, you are different. I do not mind spending my days with you, even though you are a human."

Kuroko widened his eyes fully at Midorima's words before he then smiled softly at the words Midorima had uttered at him. They had shared gazes for a moment, before Kise's loud yelp distracted both of their attention towards the blonde.

"Eek! Kuroko-cchi, you dog peed on my trousers!" Kise yelped as Nigou silently stood by his feet, and indeed, Kise's grey trousers was stained wet on the ankles.

Kuroko managed to laugh out loud at that.

* * *

The two days went by quickly as Kuroko and Kagami was busy preparing for their mission, and at last, the long awaited day has come.

Kuroko was waiting for Kagami to come down from the latter's apartment as they had promised to meet up first to head somewhere before going to their mission. He didn't have to wait long as Kagami then proceeds to come out of the front door of his apartment building.

Kuroko waved at him so Kagami would notice him and then they started to walk towards the direction to the station to go to a certain destination.

"Did you bring your clothes?" Kagami had muttered the question towards Kuroko who was walking in step beside him.

Kuroko proceeds to look blankly at Kagami while muttering his reply.

"Yes I did Kagami-kun, you don't have to worry about that, and besides I'd rather worry about your habit of not being able to sleep before missions. What are you a kindergartener going on a school trip?"

Kagami scowled at Kuroko's words while rubbing his bloodshot eyes in the process. It was true though, Kagami couldn't sleep a wink at all last night. He was too excited and worried at the same time about their upcoming mission.

They proceed to walk the rest of the way towards their destination after getting off the station. It wasn't a far destination, and before long they have arrived at their place.

It was a small two storeys building with a sign at the top that reads 'M.R. Hair Gallery'.

Kuroko and Kagami went inside the building and waited at the front door. Before long, a man with silky black hair that falls just near the shoulders had walked from the back of the shop and proceeds to widen his eyes in recognition and smiled at his new customers.

"Oh my, if it isn't Taiga-kun and Tetsu-chan! It's been a while!" The man gushed over his customers while proceeding to usher them inside the currently empty salon.

"It has been a while Mibuchi-kun, we need your help for our mission." Kuroko proceeds to greet the man named Mibuchi as he walked inside the store with Kagami beside him.

Mibuchi smiled in understanding at Kuroko's words before he then went straight into the matter.

"Mmhmm, so what's the occasion?"

Mibuchi Reo is an excellent stylist and is also working with the Society in helping their members during missions by providing disguises and a make-over for cases like these.

Kuroko sighed loudly before he then proceeds to hand over the bag he's been holding towards Mibuchi instead.

Mibuchi took the bag and looked inside of it to find the attire that Kuroko is going to wear for the mission. His eyes twinkled with excitement as he then gushed loudly at the fact that he is going to help transform Kuroko into a female.

"Oh my! What an unexpected and excellent opportunity, let's get to work shall we?" He clapped his hands as he then proceeded to sit Kagami and Kuroko down on the chairs before he then started to work with their hair.

"So what is the mission about? Why the formal wear?" He had started a conversation as he worked with Kagami's hair first, since he didn't need to spend much time in fixing the redhead's looks.

"We're going to sneak in to a party on a ship, lots of upper class people, and there's going to be an auction in the midst of it. We're gonna attend the auction to see if one of the items there is a demonic vessel." Kagami proceeds to reply towards Mibuchi as the latter is applying gel in the midst of styling Kagami's hair.

Mibuchi silently nodded at that before he then turned on the blow dryer on low setting and started to air it towards Kagami's styled hair.

Once he was done with Kagami's look he then smiled at his creation and proceeded to tap the redhead on the shoulder.

Kagami was looking ravishingly handsome with his hair slicked back messily above his forehead. It had brought out the maturity and masculinity within his sharp features and has shown the fierceness of his deep maroon eyes clearly.

Kagami nodded in thanks to Mibuchi's assistance and has silently gotten up from his seat in order to go to the bathroom and change into his formal attire.

Mibuchi then headed over towards Kuroko who was silently waiting on his seat before he then started to look over the teal head's reflection from the mirror in front of him.

Now what shall he do with this grand opportunity, Mibuchi wondered as he kept looking over Kuroko's features while he started thinking and mulling over ideas to himself. He considered the dress which Kuroko had shown him and narrowed down his ideas into one.

Yes, that look would be perfect, he thought to himself as he then proceeds to smile brightly at Kuroko's reflection who had only gazed back at him with his blank stare.

Kuroko just wanted this to be over and done with; he's not too enthusiastic about the transformation of his appearance, so to speak.

Mibuchi silently started to rummage for the needed items within his salon trolley. He then brought out a net wig cap to put over Kuroko's head to steady and hold the wig in place.

As he finishes with putting the net over Kuroko's head he then started to go towards the back of his store to find the wig that he is going to use, meanwhile Kagami had managed to get out of the bathroom with his charcoal suit fitted perfectly in place.

The redhead looked his part, Kuroko had to admit, as Kagami silently approached his seat again while picking up one of the magazines from the salon's counter tops to read during his wait for Kuroko's make-over.

Mibuchi came back with a long silky black wig in his hands as he then started to work on putting the wig in place on Kuroko's head. When he is done with the task, he then started to work in styling the wig using his various tools of hair curlers and blow dryers.

Mibuchi then proceed to style the curls over to one side, draping them over Kuroko's left shoulder, before he then applied hairspray to keep the locks and curls in place. Once he is done with styling Kuroko's hair he then proceeds to rummage within his tray for the make-up tools instead.

He turned Kuroko's chair so that the latter is facing him while Mibuchi then grabbed one of the chairs to sit on while he's applying the make-up.

He started with the cleanser and toner first while telling Kuroko to close his eyes as he applied everything with a cotton pad. He then got his powder pack and proceeds to apply a soft moisturiser first before starting with the powdering.

Kuroko has a nice porcelain skin which makes it much easier for Mibuchi to work with as he then applied the blush on Kuroko's cheeks just to give it a soft rosy tint.

Now for the last part, Mibuchi thought to himself as he then grabbed the eyeliners and eye shadow kit as he then started to work with Kuroko's closed eyes. He started applying the eyeliner first before he then worked with the eye shadows to give Kuroko's eyes a smoky effect. He didn't need to do much on Kuroko's eyelashes other than applying simple black mascara over them since they were already long enough without the need of fake eyelashes.

Once he is done with that, he then started to work with Kuroko's eyebrows and colouring them with pencil just so it will match his wig's black colour.

Mibuchi then looked over his finished work and stared in awe. He has to admit, even for himself this is probably one of the greatest works that he's ever done.

He then proceeds to smile and tap Kuroko on the shoulders before speaking to the latter.

"Okay, it's done Tetsu-chan! Now let's help you into your dress shall we?" Kuroko opened his eyes and sighed wearily before proceeding to get up from his seat and following Mibuchi to the private area of the shop which also serves as Mibuchi's office.

Kagami was getting bored in his seat as he flipped over through his magazine which he had barely even read. He was feeling the effects of going without sleep from last night, his eyes were tired, and so he then closed them in an attempt to at least rest a little before he actually had to go to the mission.

The back door of Mibuchi's office then clicked open as Mibuchi stepped out of it while smiling rather brightly as he then waited for his customer to step out from the door.

Mibuchi then looked over at Kagami and called out to him as Kuroko stepped out from the room and proceed to walk towards the main salon area as well.

"Taiga-kun, it's done."

Kagami then opened his eyes wearily as he then fixed his gaze ahead of him. What he saw had made his eyes widened in complete shock and his mouth to open in a gape. The magazine he has been holding in his hands had nearly dropped to the floor. Sleep has been wiped away from his mind.

Kuroko stood there in the royal blue evening dress which Kagami had chosen for the latter. His wig's black tresses are cascading down towards the left side of his exposed shoulders. He was wearing the simple black flats which he and Kagami had chosen to match the outfit he currently wore and is also easy for him to walk and run in, in case they needed to.

Kuroko Tetsuya is looking absolutely gorgeous; there is simply no other word to describe him other than that. While he makes a rather plain and nearly invisible man, the one that is standing in front of Kagami at the moment simply takes his breath away.

Kagami slowly got up from his seat while keeping his eyes at Kuroko's form without breaking his gaze. He seriously didn't expect for the other's transformation to actually work this well. This is beyond his expectations and Kagami tried to voice it out.

"Wow, Kuroko you look… wow."

Kuroko turned his head towards Kagami while frowning deeply as he then raised his hand in an attempt to stop the other from speaking any further.

"Kagami-kun, don't start."

While Kagami is rather pleased by Kuroko's appearance, the latter had actually felt the opposite way about it.

Kuroko is very conflicted about his current situation, while he is glad that Mibuchi had managed to make him look convincing enough to pull of their mission, he is also rather upset at the fact that he had to dress up as a woman, and managed to look like a real one at that.

Kuroko is silently seething towards himself at the dilemma he is currently facing and his mood shows through his eyes. Kagami then proceeds to clear his throat and decided not to say anything to anger his partner further.

An angry Kuroko is not someone that you would want to mess with, and Kagami had to learn that fact the hard way in the past.

They proceed to say their thanks to Mibuchi who had escorted them out of the shop while wishing them luck and holding on to their previous clothes until the two of them get back from their mission.

Kagami managed to hail a taxi from the sidewalk as he and Kuroko then proceeded to ride their way towards their next destination.

The taxi had dropped them off near the port where their ship would depart within an hour.

Kagami and Kuroko started to walk towards the port while searching for any signs of the ship's location. It wasn't hard to locate the ship, after all the grand cruiser is one of the largest ships that roams the seas of their country.

The two then proceeds to silently walk and join in with the small crowd that had formed a line in order to gain entrance into the ship. A couple of the faces there were recognizable from TV's and social media and so forth. It had really made the entire situation to slowly sink in deeper into their consciousness.

This is it, they were really doing this, and once they were inside the ship there will be no backing out of it. Kagami and Kuroko hold their breaths as they then stepped forward as the next in line to be admitted into the ship.

The male security staff had smiled politely towards the both of them before asking for their tickets and proof of identity, to which Kagami had then handed over towards the security staff to be inspected thoroughly.

The security staff seemed satisfied with their documents and had returned it towards Kagami before proceeding to bow his head towards the both of them as he then raised his hand and gestured for the two to board the ramp towards the ship.

"Welcome to the S. S. Teikou, Mr. and Mrs. Hayashi, please mind your steps as you board the ship."

* * *

_A/N_: NGHHHH FIRST OF ALL THANK YOU FOR READING MY STORY AND FOR THE REVIEWS FAVORITES AND FOLLOWS!

Anyways moving on, I personally love writing this chapter, it's one of those funny and small moments that brings out the relationship between each characters and not to mention the humor lol, however, I am sorry if any of you find this chapter rather boring and dragging on, I just wanted to highlight certain facts before all the action and pow wow started.

My author's note for this chapter isn't going to be as long as the last one because it is currently 7:35 am in the morning and I haven't slept a wink, so I'll leave you guys to read this and expect some emails of review notifications when I wake up muahahhaah

So thank you again for everything guys I hope you'll continue to stay with me as I improve and bring out the next chapters to come! Ciao and enjoy!


	8. Of Masquerades and Revelations

_A/N_: Ok some of you might be wondering why I put the author's note at the top this time, well it's because I have an important announcement to make.

I have decided to ask the help of a beta to edit this story, she's one of my greatest friends and one of the most talented author in the history of KnB fiction, some of you might know her as the author of various stories like 'Beast' and 'Let the Right One In'.

Yes, my awesome beta is **Roselilia** who has written and contributed to the KnB fandom so much, and had decided to offer her help to the noob writer that is me. So expect to see some improvements in the upcoming chapters and I hope you'll enjoy this chapter as much as we enjoy bringing it out to you.

* * *

**_Chapter 8 – Of Masquerades and Revelations_**

Kagami and Kuroko stared in awe at their surroundings.

The outside of the ship was impressive already, but the inside of the ship is even more lavish and grand.

The corridors of the ship were made of mahogany dark wood and the large main halls were covered by velvet burgundy carpets. The luxury within each various rooms and lounge areas made it clear that they were obviously meant to accommodate the upper echelons.

Kagami proceeded to go to the front concierge desk to get their room number and key while showing their tickets and their proof of identity once again.

Kagami and Kuroko then walked straight towards their allocated room and locked the doors before their façade was then discarded as they slowly regained their own sense of privacy.

Kagami sighed wearily before he dropped his tired body down on the clean white sheets of the double bed provided in their room. Kuroko had also visibly relaxed as his shoulders seemed to ease up from the tension and stiffness of fear that someone might see through their disguises.

Kagami rubbed his tired eyes wearily before he then turned his gaze towards Kuroko who had moved to sit next to him on the other side of the bed.

"Kuroko, what should we do now?" Kagami inquired towards his partner in regards of their next course of action now that they've successfully boarded the ship.

Kuroko looked towards Kagami with his clear blue orbs before replying with his thoughts.

"Kagami-kun, we should wait until the ship departs before doing anything else, the party will start soon after and we can start to investigate the auction then."

Kagami only nodded at Kuroko's words before he then closed his eyes in an attempt to get as much rest as possible before they had to do their actual job within the ship.

Kuroko sighed before he lay down on the bed as well, keeping in mind to take extra care to not ruin his disguise. He was feeling very drained and tired of the whole thing already, but he knew that this was a job that only he and Kagami could do and so he would complete it to the best of his ability.

An hour passed by before long and while Kagami and Kuroko had started to doze off a little the sound of loud microphone static startled them in the middle of their rest as a polite and deep voice spoke through the speakers fitted within their room and throughout the entire ship.

"Ladies and gentlemen this is your captain speaking, welcome aboard the S. S. Teikou. We are about to depart from the harbour, I repeat, we are about to depart from the harbour. We sincerely hope that you'll enjoy your stay with us."

Kuroko and Kagami looked up at the announcement that was just made, and indeed, a long horn sounded to mark the departure of their ship from the harbour.

Kagami sat up on the bed before he then levelled a gaze towards Kuroko who merely nodded in return to the gesture.

'Time to go', they thought as they rose up from the bed and started heading out towards the door.

Kuroko and Kagami stalked the corridors with much caution although they might appear just like a normal couple, each of their senses were tuned to their surroundings, after all they would never know what might occur especially since they knew that they were going to have to deal with the mafia and other unknown threats.

They reached their main destination, the grand hall which served as the main ballroom for the party to take place in.

The large hall was filled with party goers, perhaps along the line of two-hundred or so attendees and everyone there seemed to emit the aura of splendour and elegance. Business men and politicians mingled with other business men and politicians, while artists and entertainers mingled with their own kind. It was a lavish party with various delicacies and cuisines served out as a banquet for everyone to enjoy and partake in.

Kuroko and Kagami felt out of place within the area, however they tried to not let it show through their façade and instead tried to keep calm as they stayed next to each other while trying to wander around the grand hall with vigilance.

Nothing seemed unusual though, everyone was enjoying the party and the meals that were being served while sporting the occasional chatters amongst their own.

Once they were finished with roaming and circling around the entire hall, Kuroko and Kagami decided to stay near the walls, trying to act as inconspicuous as possible.

While they were glad that nothing unusual was happening, a sense of unease slowly built up inside of them, and they couldn't find any peace while knowing there were threats that were still looming ahead of them.

They hadn't said a single word to each other while they kept watch from the sidelines of everything that was happening around them, until Kagami's stomach growled loudly.

Kuroko turned to look towards the slightly sheepish and embarrassed Kagami who could only manage to smile apologetically towards Kuroko before muttering his excuse.

"Right, I'm gonna go get some food. Sorry, could you wait here for a bit?"

Kuroko silently nodded at the redhead's gestures before the latter left his side and proceeded to grab a plate while choosing some of the delicacies which had captured his interest in order to satisfy his grumbling stomach.

Kuroko knew that the redhead had a massive appetite, and so he could only sigh and wait near the walls while trying to stay as hidden as possible.

Unfortunately for Kuroko, his current appearance did not allow him the luxury of invisibility, and therefore, before long, a man approached Kuroko's side while having an amiable smile on his face as he tried to strike a conversation with him.

"Hello miss, it seems like you're rather alone at this party, would you like to sit by my table and have a chat with me over a drink?"

The man seemed nice and welcoming, but Kuroko was not in the mood to indulge in a conversation with another person at that moment, especially not while he was still in his female disguise, and so Kuroko tried to smile as apologetically as possible before declining the offer politely with a small voice.

"I am sorry sir, but I'm currently waiting for my husband to get back. He's been gone for a while now; I should probably go and look for him instead." Kuroko bowed his head politely before turning around and walking straight towards the opposite direction of the man.

This was getting to be quite unbearable and all Kuroko wanted to do was to find Kagami before dragging his ass back towards their room to talk about their next course of action.

There was seriously nothing unusual happening in this party, and therefore that lead to one conclusion only; that the auction was happening somewhere else and they needed to discuss and search for the place and how to get inside of it.

Kuroko spotted Kagami before long, between the lines of people near the buffet area and as expected the redhead was gorging himself on massive amounts of food and continuously refilling his plate with even more food.

Kuroko sighed and was about to approach the redhead when suddenly their eyes met and Kuroko immediately tilted his head and gave him a look that said 'get back here now'.

The redhead smiled sheepishly before piling one last serving onto his plate and started to head towards Kuroko instead.

While he was trying to weave past all of the people lining up, he had managed to bump into a petite young woman along the way and almost spilled his food onto her. They both managed to regain their balance before anything else happened though and Kagami looked down towards the woman.

"I am very sorry for bumping into you miss, are you okay?" The woman smiled reassuringly at Kagami's concerned enquiry and managed to reply back with a soft and silvery voice.

"I am fine, sir. Thank you for asking." The woman looked up one last time towards Kagami with her magenta orbs and proceeded to bow her head before walking away.

Kagami didn't spare the woman another glance and instead started heading towards Kuroko's direction before the teal head got even more upset at him and made him deal with the consequences later.

Kuroko patiently waited for Kagami and soon the redhead was standing beside him. Kuroko proceeded to grab his sleeves before gently tugging him towards the exit of the hall.

Kagami silently followed and before long they were already on their way back and had managed to enter the sanctuary of their own private room.

Kuroko proceeded to close the doors before turning towards Kagami to level him with an urgent gaze.

"We have a serious problem, the auction is not as public as we were led to believe, and it's currently happening somewhere else."

Kagami swallowed the last of the food from his plate before he turned his eyes towards Kuroko and stared back with a gaze that matched the other's urgency.

"So what now? What are we supposed to do, search the entire ship?" Kuroko sighed at the redhead's words before he went silent and started to think about what to do next.

The situation wasn't looking too good for them at that moment and before long Kuroko sighed as he decided to choose the only available option to solve their current problems.

Kuroko reached his hands inside of his small party clutch that he'd been wearing before grasping for the only thing that was hidden within it. He took out his silver summoning bracelet before wearing it around his wrist and was about to summon for his familiars when a bright light suddenly surrounded the entire room.

Kuroko and Kagami closed their eyes until the light faded away and standing there were both Kise and Midorima in their usual manner. Kise was smiling as brightly as ever while Midorima would have looked rather serious and dignified with his stern gaze and glasses, if not for the teddy bear which he was currently holding with his right hand.

Kuroko sighed in relief at their timely presence before he silently approached them and started to discuss his plan with them.

"Thanks for the well-timed appearance, both of you; we need your help for this mission. I need the two of you to sense for any major-… are you two listening?" Kuroko frowned as he raised his hand and waved it in front of Kise's and Midorima's frozen shocked faces before they blinked their eyes in surprise and snapped back to reality.

Kise was the first one to react as he widened his eyes and parted his lips in a soft gasp at Kuroko's appearance before regarding him with a gaze of admiration and something undecipherable.

"Kuroko-cchi? Is that really you?! Wow…"

Kuroko's confused and concerned gaze turned into a dull tired one before he sighed and decided to disregard what Kise had said in favour of continuing with his original request.

"If you're done with staring at my disguise, I need you two to help me by sensing for any disturbances or unusual presence within this ship. The majority of the guests should be gathered in the grand hall for the party, but I have a feeling that the auction is supposed to be taking place somewhere else. We don't have that much time, and we need to find and narrow the places down as soon as possible."

Kuroko's eyes turned back to its serious and determined gaze and both Kise and Midorima both nodded in silent understanding of the graveness of the situation.

Midorima proceeded to fix his glasses before he then closed his eyes as a soft green glow seemed to surround his entire being. He raised his left hand in order to magnify his powers and gain a greater sense of the entire ship's surroundings and layout.

Midorima opened his eyes again soon after and fixed his gaze towards Kuroko while telling him of his findings.

"This cruiser's structure and passages are quite complicated, I can sense that there are a lot of people in a large room just near the deck of the ship which I assume is where the main hall should be. However, there's another gathering of people, not as many but it is quite a considerable amount located within a smaller room near the bottom hull of the ship, past the engine rooms down below."

Kuroko and Kagami widened their eyes at the new information they had just received before they shared a gaze and nodded towards each other as they silently conveyed their own similar thoughts. That must be where the auction was taking place.

"Thank you, Midorima-kun; now let's head to the auction before we're too late." Kuroko said with a soft smile of gratitude directed at the latter.

Midorima had only silently grunted in response while fixing his glasses again, however there's a faint tinge of redness tinting his cheeks and just on the tip of his ears.

Kise snickered as he saw through the other's feigned ignorance and couldn't help but tease Midorima about it.

"Aww Midorima-cchi! Are you embarrassed by any chance? That's so cute!" Kise started to giggle and grins like a child who had found his favourite toy, which earned a sharp glare from Midorima.

"You idiot, why would I be embarrassed, there's nothing to be embarrassed about, stop comparing me to the likes of you!" Midorima replied in a gruff tone with a voice that was slightly louder than usual.

Kuroko only managed to roll his eyes at his familiars' usual antics before he started to head out towards the door followed by Kagami who seemed to be quite bewildered and amused with the bickering that had ensued between the two familiars.

Midorima walked out of the room with Kise on his trail before he assumed the lead towards their destination, seeing as he already knew the entire layout of the massive ship and had an actual clue on which passages they should take towards their destination.

They continued to walk in silence, all of their senses alert and cautious of their surroundings. Any noise or footsteps within the wide range of their vicinity did not go unmissed by Midorima's and Kise's exceptional hearing.

The tension in the air seemed to rise the more they delved deeper inside the ship and the lights seemed to grow dimmer and dimmer with every single step they took towards the bottom.

The views had started to change as well, from the exquisite grandiose of the grand corridors and massive halls, to darker and narrower alleys with less lighting and appearance and they were surrounded by plain white walls that seemed to enhance the shadows looming ahead of them.

They entered the engine rooms and were immediately surrounded by the constant mechanical sound of the ship's engine working monotonously, which created a heavier atmosphere and an ominous foreboding in their minds. The dimly lit metal platform they were walking on seemed to stretch on further towards the darkness in front of them.

They were near their destination, even Kagami and Kuroko who didn't have demonic senses or hearing could tell, and they were right. Not long after, the stretching of the platform ended, leading up towards a dark red curtain that seemed to serve as a cover for an entrance.

Midorima stopped right in front of the curtain before turning around to face Kuroko while levelling him a serious gaze.

"This is it, the room is beyond this entrance. There are two people standing guard behind this door and they are also armed with weapons." Kagami and Kuroko widened their eyes, before they nodded towards the information.

Kagami walked in first while opening the curtains before he took a deep breath and proceeded to open the door with the utmost caution one could manage.

Midorima was right, there were two people, and they turned their heads with shock and surprise marring their faces towards the unexpected visitors who had barged in. They immediately went for their firearms which were equipped on their belts before aiming them towards Kagami and the other three who were silently standing behind of him.

"Who the fuck are you people, this is restricted area. Get the fuck out of here before I shoot you." The guards snarled at them.

Kagami feigned surprise and proceeded to smile and raise his hands to calm the two guards down before he spoke with a light tone while aiming to ease the tension.

"Whoa, easy there! We're guests for the auction taking place inside. I've got tickets and identity if you want to see." Kagami ruffled his pockets for the ship tickets and proof of identity while the guards seemed to ease up a little and lower their guns, although their expression still remained dubious.

Kagami handed the tickets and documents over to one of the guards who looked over it while referring to a list. He frowned while turning to speak towards the other guard standing beside him with confusion and skepticism in his voice.

"Hey, I thought that all of the auction participants were already admitted inside, what the fuck's going on here? And why are there only two documents if all four of you are going in?"

'Oh shit, this is gonna get rough', Kagami thought nervously. As the redhead was panicking over their situation, Kise stepped forward with a bright grin on his face before speaking to the two guards in his light and airy tone.

"Now, now, you will let us in, won't you?" Kise's voice dropped as his sunny grin melted into a dangerous smile, his amber eyes seeming to glow with an ominous light within the darkness of the room as he stared straight into the widened eyes of the guards.

The two guards, who had started to aim for their weapons, proceeded to drop their hands in a seemingly tranced state before nodding their heads slowly at Kise's words while their expression seemed to ease into a blank state as they proceeded to move and make way for the four of them.

One of them gestured with his hands to the inside of the dark room before bowing deeply to the four of them.

"Welcome to the auction, please step right in and take your masks before you proceed inside the room." He said with a voice that seems to be devoid of any emotion.

Kise and the rest stepped inside into the narrow entrance corridor while the other guard handed them four individual masquerade masks that served to cover their eyes and identity from other guests as well as individual numbers to participate inside the auction.

"Please step right in and enjoy the event." The second guard bowed after he finished handing them the items and gestured for the four of them to head inside the room and past the entrance area.

The four of them wore their masks before walking inside to find themselves within a grand theatrical room that seems to be vacant of any lighting, except for one spotlight aimed at the centre of the stage where a platform laid with a single statue right in the middle of it, while a man in a monochrome black suit wearing the same masquerade mask stood next to it with a microphone in his hands.

"Going once, going twice, and… sold to the gentleman on number 38 for five hundred million dollars. Congratulations, on your winning bid for the Statue of Romanov. It shall be delivered to you right after the auction."

Kagami and Kuroko widened their eyes at the scene that was happening in front of them. There were at least fifty people in the room and all of them were wearing formal attires and gowns while having their faces concealed by masks.

The four of them sat at the very back of the room while keeping a close watch over their surroundings and noting any significant details of the events happening in front of them.

Kagami turned to Kuroko who sat next to him, while Kise and Midorima were silently watching the auction developments from Kuroko's other side.

"Kuroko, isn't that the stolen statue from that art museum six months back?" Kagami whispered. Kuroko didn't break his gaze from the front stage while he leaned slightly towards him.

"Yeah, I'm surprised you knew about that Kagami-kun, I didn't think you'd be the type to care or have knowledge about art." Kuroko whispered with the same low volume.

Kagami scowled at Kuroko's remark, not that the latter could see it with the dark setting and the masks covering their eyes. The redhead silently turned his gaze towards the stage as well while watching for anything unusual.

'So far so good', the redhead thought with slight relief. Now they just needed to pray that everything would go as smoothly and that nothing would actually happen during this auction.

The four of them watched the auction's progress in the same manner for quite some time. Works of art that were thought of as missing or stolen were continuously being brought out and staged on the centre platform where they were placed to be judged of their value by the eager bidders who would raise the prices as much as their pride and wealth allows them to.

It was quite the sight and Kuroko didn't know whether he should feel glad that at least nothing unusual was currently happening or whether to feel disappointed that nothing happened and everyone in here would walk out freely with their illegally obtained treasures.

The auction seemed to drone on and while Kagami and Kuroko were being quite vigilant about the entire matter, Kise and Midorima were slightly bored and rather apathetic as they watched the current situation around them.

They had lived for centuries so it was of no surprise to them to see the human greed that seemed to suffocate and consume the entire room while everyone sought to satisfy their own personal pride and collections. This was human nature and they had seen it happen over and over again, even though that didn't make the event less disgusting to watch.

Kise leaned back towards his seat while resting his head on his arm that was perched on the side of his armrest. His eyes were half lidded from the boredom and the irony of the situation while he silently glanced around for anything unusual.

For a moment nothing seemed to have caught his eye; however he then spotted something from the corners of his vision just to the right side of the room near the walls.

A woman was standing there, watching the auction with a mask perched on her face and normally that won't be of any issue to Kise as it was too dark to see within the room. However with his extraordinary vision he could see her features even from afar and one thing had caught his eye.

Her magenta eyes were familiar and for one moment he had almost risen up from his seat convinced that she was someone he used to know from the past but that was impossible. There was no way that woman could be here now of all times and besides, why would she be here in the first place?

Kise took a deep breath to calm himself before silently turning his eyes towards the front stage of the auction room while Midorima glanced at the blonde's rather unusual actions.

Fortunately for them, the auction soon came to an end with only one last item left to bid for. Kuroko and Kagami were almost relieved and anxious at the same time.

This was their last obstacle. Now they just needed to get through this without any hitch or problems and everything will turn out fine.

The auctioneer soon raised his microphone again and spoke with a loud booming voice that seemed to reverberate around the room with a large smile plastered on his face.

"And now, for the final item! A grand masterpiece from the 16th century recently discovered and dug up by archaeologists from the far continents of the West! The curved dagger of Martis!"

A female attendant wearing a mask and a black dress brought out the item with gloved hands before perching it on a stand atop of the platform for the bidders to see.

Kagami and Kuroko's eyes immediately went to the dagger with scrutiny while trying to sense anything emitting from it. For a moment everything seemed all well and good, that is until the auctioneer spoke again with slight amusement tinging his voice.

"Now, now, don't get disheartened yet ladies and gentlemen, while the dagger is indeed impressive the real value of it lies elsewhere."

The auctioneer picked up the dagger with his gloved hands carefully before raising it up and facing the top of the hilt towards the audience.

A sound of gasps and awe could be heard from the entire audience as they saw what was perched on the hilt of the dagger.

Kuroko and Kagami could feel their stomach drop at the revelation, while trying to convince themselves that what they were currently seeing was just an illusion. However the auctioneer's voice soon broke through their thoughts while crushing whatever hope they had that their fears were unjustified.

"Yes, ladies and gentlemen, the true value of this dagger lies within the oval cut blue sapphire that is on the edge of the hilt. Mysterious and captivating as the dark and treacherous ocean while retaining a beauty that is like no other. The starting bid will be five million dollars."

It was a cue for the bidders to raise their prices while yelling on the top of their lungs in hope that they'll be able to obtain the curious dagger and the large sapphire gem perched on the top of its hilt.

"Kuroko this is bad, what should we do?" Kagami whispered to Kuroko urgently. Kuroko turned his critical gaze towards Kagami.

"Kagami-kun, we will need to take immediate action once the auction is over, right now we can't do anything without exposing our identities in the process." Kuroko said with absolute urgency and a tinge of desperation marring his eyes. "We should wait until everything is over and then proceed to sneak into the back of the auction room to detain the gem."

Kagami nodded his head quickly in response before turning his eyes back towards the gem and watching it with vigilant eyes while Kuroko then turned towards his familiars.

"Midorima-kun and Kise-kun, I need your assistance in this matter, please help us in securing the gem after the auction is over." Kuroko said in an urgent voice to convey the importance of the situation.

Midorima only nodded silently as he looked towards Kuroko while affirming his response with a serious gaze.

Kise however, was unresponsive as his attention seemed to be focused solely on one thing and one thing only.

"Kise-kun?" Kuroko called out to him with a faint voice that revealed his confusion and concern over the blonde.

Kuroko was rather worried about his familiar's lack of response and was about to reach his hand to touch Kise's arm next to him when a single word was uttered from the latter's lips.

It was as faint as a whisper in the wind, dying and swallowed away within the continuous chatter and shouts of bidding around them. However, Kuroko's attention was focused solely on his familiar and so he heard the one word that the blonde had uttered with a soft trembling voice.

"Aomine-cchi…"

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_A/N (2nd part):_ *drumrollsssssss* yessssss the next GoM has been revealed, now whatcha think about this chapter?

As I have mentioned on the top before I have asked the help of a beta so it should reduce my use of repetitive words and expand my limited vocabulary lol. Anyways this chapter was fun to write although I did make a lot of mistakes which I think had given my friend quite a headache in editing it lol

Anyways I hope you'll stay tuned up for the next chapters to come and I hope you'll enjoy reading this as much as I enjoy writing it :D Ciao!


	9. A Dying Reunion

_Special Thanks to my wonderful beta and amazing friend _**Roselilia**_ for helping me edit this chapter and for having limitless patience and understanding in dealing with me and my mistakes, and also a huge thanks to all of you readers out there for your continuous support. I hope you'll enjoy reading this chapter as much as we enjoy bringing it out to you all._

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**_Chapter 9 – A Dying Reunion_**

"Kise-kun" Kuroko repeated the words while slightly shaking his familiar's arm, who had regained his senses and turned to look towards Kuroko with an apologetic smile that seemed somewhat stiff.

"Oh… right, sorry I got distracted for a minute there."

Kuroko wasn't convinced by Kise's excuse and frowned a little before deciding to inquire about the latter's whispered words just before.

"Are you ok? And what were you-" Kuroko never got to finish his sentence when a loud scream broke out from the crowds at the front.

All four of them got up from their seats while trying to see through the throngs of people that were currently yelling in panic and fighting to get out of the room in that instant.

"Fuck!" Kagami exclaimed loudly before tearing the mask off his face while trying to see the obscured view through the mass of crowds and darkness of the room.

Kuroko and his familiars followed by taking their masks off their faces and immediately shuffled out of their seat row, trying to break past the countless people fighting to go the opposite way towards the exit.

Kagami ran closely behind while cursing under his breath at the current mess of their situation.

This wasn't looking too good and from what he could see and feel of the gem from the distance, if there is a demon residing inside of it; it's going to be as powerful as Kise or Midorima, or maybe even more.

Eventually they manage to break free after shuffling and dodging past the obstacles and immediately stopped short in their tracks once they get close enough to see what's happening.

There was dark liquid pooling down on the floors, even in the darkness they could tell that it was blood staining the carpets. A man was lying still on his stomach while his face was morphed into one of shock and agony. He was trembling from the blood loss and even Kuroko could tell that the man didn't have long left to live.

Their gazes turned simultaneously towards the auctioneer instead who was standing next to the man with a sickening grin on his face while his eyes were glowing with madness. Insanity was reeking out from his entire being and in his hands was the dagger stained with the red liquid dripping from the tip of the blade.

Kuroko frowned deeply at the scene in front of him; this man has been completely consumed by the demonic aura from that dagger and they needed to detain him and separate him from that gem before anything else happened.

The auctioneer turned his gaze towards the four of them while still having a crazed smile plastered on his lips.

"This dagger is mine, and mine only! I'll cut and slice through anyone who wants to separate it from me!" He hissed the words out and cackled in a shrill voice dripping with malice.

Kagami clicked his tongue with annoyance, not only they have a murder case on their hands and now they also need to detain this insane man.

The auctioneer then charged towards them while cackling loudly like a maniac, intent on stabbing whoever was standing close enough to him.

Kise went and shielded Kuroko from the dangers in front of them while Midorima moved quickly and was about to shoot one of his arrow beams aiming it towards the man's hands to make him drop the dagger and separate him from the demonic influence within the sapphire.

His task got interrupted though when a woman suddenly came out from the shadows and gave the auctioneer a swift chop on the neck that immediately immobilized him and made him drop to the ground.

The woman slowly bent down to pick up the dropped dagger and cradled it in her hands before turning and gazing towards the four of them with her magenta orbs.

For a moment Kagami thought that they would have another insane demon influenced person on their hands, however the eyes that stared at their direction seemed composed and somewhat calculating.

The woman smiled towards the four of them before taking her mask off with one of her hands revealing a petite and attractive face framed by rose coloured locks.

Kagami immediately recognized the woman as the one he bumped into at the banquet within the party earlier. He was about to call out to her to stay away from the dagger before she became consumed by the constantly growing demonic aura surrounding it, when Kise suddenly stepped forward and levelled a clouded gaze that revealed his inner turmoil at seeing the mysterious woman.

"Momo-cchi…" Kise spoke with a low and uncertain voice while the pink haired woman turned her gaze towards Kise. Her eyes widened in slight surprise before narrowing down into a somewhat friendly gaze.

"Ki-chan, it's been a while." She spoke with a hint of familiarity in her voice towards the blond demon who seemed somewhat conflicted at the current development.

"Yeah, it has been a long time." Kise said with a nostalgic sad smile on his face.

Kuroko and Kagami widened their eyes in shock at the current scene in front of them while Midorima narrowed his eyes with apprehension at the fact that the blonde knew of the woman in front of them. He also suspected that Kise knew more about the dagger and the gem than he let on.

Kagami decided to voice out his bewilderment towards the two acquaintances.

"Wait, you two knew each other? And lady, you need to stay away from that dagger and hand it over to us, it's dangerous and you might turn out like that guy." Kagami explained with all seriousness within his voice as he gestured towards the auctioneer near the bottom of her feet while locking his gaze towards her.

The woman smiled before she giggled with amusement tinting her voice as she gazed straight at the redhead with her magenta orbs.

"Oh my, you're a kind person aren't you, but you don't need to worry about me, after all…" The woman's silvery and light voice dropped an octave lower while her gaze turned rather predatory as a demonic presence seemed to surround her entire being, revealing her true nature towards the four of them.

Kagami and Kuroko immediately took a defensive stance while Midorima narrowed his eyes towards the woman in front of them, preparing to act in case the worst happened.

Kise hardened his gaze as he raised his hand in a silent request while staring straight at the woman's magenta orbs.

"Momo-cchi, I need you to hand over that dagger to me, you know how dangerous he is if he ever awakens into this world once again." Kise spoke towards the woman with an unusual grave seriousness in his voice to which she returned with a pained look for a moment before straightening her expression back to its indifferent mask.

"You know I can't do that Ki-chan, besides the seal won't even break in the first place if not for these humans interfering and taking what isn't theirs. Now, if you'll excuse me I shall take my leave before anything else happens and before he wakes up." She said as she turned to walk past them towards the entrance. Kise immediately moved to block her way while Kuroko and Midorima stood firm in their place preparing to resort towards violence if needed be.

"We can't let you do that Momo-cchi." Kise spoke with a serious tone while his amber eyes remains locked onto her magenta ones.

Kagami's hands immediately went to his silver bracelet while keeping his gaze locked on the woman in front of them as he summoned his familiar.

"I call upon thee, he of the netherworld and spawn of the Devil, heed my call and appear upon my words, Draco."

A bright light shone throughout the entire place until it faded down, revealing Himuro who immediately went to stand beside his master while preparing for battle.

The pink haired woman then widened her eyes with feigned surprise before smiling as if she wasn't at all perturbed by the appearance of Kagami's familiar.

"Oh, so you're a summoner, no wonder I felt something weird when I bumped into you at the party earlier. Well then, I guess I have get serious now." The woman's eyes glowed within the dim lighting of the room as the demonic aura that surrounded her seemed to intensify in return.

Kagami and Kuroko widened their eyes with alarm while Midorima, Kise and Himuro stood in front of their masters protectively.

"I'll ask you one more time, move out of my way." The pink haired woman stood with a cold expression that befitted her chilling tone.

"Momo-cchi, please we don't have to do this, just give us the dagger." Kise tried to convince the woman one last time, even though he already knew what her answer will be.

"Sorry Ki-chan, you leave me with no choice." The woman said as she raised her hands, creating tendrils of whip like beams that lashed out towards the five of them with incredible speed.

Kise blocked her attacks by forming a shield on time while Midorima parried by shooting his arrow beams to counter her whips.

Himuro stood in front of Kagami while forming a shield of his own that managed to stop her attacks as well.

Kuroko and Kagami were feeling quite restless by this development. While they knew they were in no immediate danger since their familiars were strong enough to protect them, they were rather frustrated at the fact that they couldn't do anything at the moment to help counter the attacks the woman was throwing at them.

They were basically useless without their proper equipment and weapons with them, and that didn't make them feel any better about the escalating situation at hand.

The woman kept lashing her light whips in their direction while Midorima and Kise parried and dodged the attacks swiftly, shielding Kuroko in the process with absolute caution. Himuro and Kagami stood farther from the woman's direction therefore the attacks weren't as intense on their side and were easier to block.

Midorima suddenly narrowed his eyes as he saw an opening and started to form a light beam to shoot it directly at the woman's head from behind her, however the woman moved just seconds before the light beam managed to hit her.

She turned her eyes towards Midorima and narrowed her calculative gaze dangerously while smiling with a sense of comprehension in her expression.

Midorima furrowed his brows deeply while returning her gaze with a fierce one of his own.

"Woman, how did you dodge my attack just now? It is the first time I've seen someone escaping cleanly without parrying with a shield." Midorima uttered the words with a disgruntled and curious tone. The woman smiled wider in return as she tilted her head while acting as if she were trying to choose the right words.

"Well, let's just say it's a woman's intuition." She replied towards his inquiry with an amused and secretive tone. Midorima was not pleased nor was he convinced of her answer towards his question.

Kise entered the conversation as he stared straight at the woman's magenta eyes while explaining to the rest of them.

"Momo-cchi, I mean Momoi Satsuki, is a demon that specializes in analysing the opponent's strengths and weaknesses, her true ability lies in the fact that she can predict the future, which means she can see and dodge our attacks before it actually happens." Kise said as he narrowed his gaze while Momoi's innocent smile turned into a wicked one.

"Well Ki-chan, I'm glad you still remember me from the old days, however, I have no more time to waste with you all." Momoi's voice became colder as she started to form more light tendrils and aimed them towards her opponents with a speed much greater than before.

While her appearance seemed to be misleadingly pleasant and gentle, Momoi Satsuki was not to be taken light of. Her fast attacks combined with her future insight has made her an opponent to be feared.

Kise and Midorima had no problems in parrying and dodging her attacks, however their counter options were also painstakingly limited since they had to ensure Kuroko's safety. At the same time, they also had to make sure that their attacks won't damage their surroundings too much since they were on a ship at that moment and one careless move could be fatal for all of them on board.

Kagami and Himuro tried their best to help with the situation but they were also quite restricted in their course of action since Himuro wasn't as strong or fast as Midorima and Kise in shielding them from the pink head's attacks and Kagami didn't have his weapons with him at that moment.

All in all, the entire situation didn't appear advantageous for them at that moment, neither side was doing any damage to the other and they were both equally matched.

Kuroko knew he was only being a burden towards his familiars as they tried their best to apprehend the dagger from Momoi while protecting him from harm at the same time. He needed to figure out how to be able to make use of himself while also contemplating a way to bring advantage to their side fast.

Kuroko considered Momoi's ability using his sharp skills of observance. While Momoi's attacks were not as lethal as Kise's Perfect Copy or Midorima's arrow beams they were still quite deadly if combined with her future sight and considerable speed.

He needed to find a way to immobilize Momoi's future insight somehow, since that was what's really hampering their efforts at the moment. From what he could see, Momoi's insight ability worked on any attacks thrown at her, but even so, sometimes she would throw a shield out just to block some attacks from hitting her, but why?

Normally Kuroko would attribute it to Midorima and Kise's speed being much faster than hers, and so she couldn't help but throw a shield out, but that didn't make any sense. It's not like she wasn't moving fast enough to dodge the limited sets of attacks thrown at her, and she only ever did it when Kise decided to replicate Midorima's arrow beams and aim it at her in succession after Midorima's attacks.

Kuroko's eyes widened as a certain realization dawned upon him. 'That's it!' he had found the loophole to Momoi's ability, now he just needed to get the message across towards Midorima and Kise somehow without the pink haired demon knowing, and that's where the hard part was.

What on earth could he possibly say or do in this situation to convey the whole idea to both his familiars who were busy with protecting his life while fighting the woman that couldn't know of his plan. It was a ludicrous task but he had to do it somehow, and after mulling his ideas for a while he only had one option left, he wasn't sure if it's going to work but it is worth trying.

Kuroko stayed directly behind his familiars and turned his back towards the battle happening in front of them while touching his bracelet as inconspicuously as possible. He tried to be subtle and utilize his lack of presence to bring attention away from himself as much as he could. Faint enchantments rolled of his tongue and past his barely moving lips in a feather soft whisper.

Kuroko fully concentrated on what he was doing and he didn't have time for distractions, especially since this current spell was one of his weakest points. If everything else failed he was going to blame Kagami for it, since the redhead was the one who had the gall to invite him out to skip their class during the lecture when the spell was being taught.

'I swear I'm going to give him a massive scare once we get out of this alive, or maybe just drop Nigou off to his house for a couple of days and see how that work-' Kuroko's fleeting thoughts were interrupted when he felt another voice echoed through his mind as his finished the last words of the spell.

'Kuroko-cchi?' The voice had called, and Kuroko immediately wiped his thoughts clean of anything else other than the message he wanted to convey to the both of them.

'Listen well both of you, I found a way around Momoi-san's precognition ability. I'm not sure if this is going to work but I want you both to try it out.' Kuroko revealed his thoughts and waited for a response, just to make sure they understood what he was thinking at that moment.

'Continue.' Midorima's voice echoed through his mind in confirmation and so Kuroko went on with revealing his plan to his familiars.

'Basically, I want the both of you to attack her at the same time, however bring her attention towards one of you only and don't let her know there's another attack coming.' Kuroko finished his sentence and paused before he prepared for his next instructions.

'The way her precognitive ability works is that she is able to see the immediate future of your actions. However she can only predict one future at a time and therefore she will only be able to anticipate a single attack within an exact moment. So if she has already predicted Kise-kun's attacks she cannot see into the future of Midorima-kun's attacks at the same time.' Kuroko finished relaying his thoughts over to his familiars and waited for their response. Midorima was the first to react as he then broke the silence between their telepathic communications.

'Understood, I shall try to divert her attention towards me.' Midorima delivered his thoughts with a decisive tone. Kise cut in soon after and also gave his affirmative as to their next course of action.

'Okay, I'll attack her from behind at the same time. I'll follow your lead Midorima-cchi!' Even in his thoughts Kise still maintained his cheerful and sing song voice, just how he managed that Kuroko didn't know.

'Hmph, just don't get in my way.' Midorima replied with his own thoughts in a tone that left no room for arguments.

Kuroko smiled slightly before he broke his concentration in maintaining the spell and cut off their communication. He slowly turned around again while trying to look past the broad shoulders of his familiars towards Momoi.

She wasn't making it easy for them, and somehow her attacks seemed to get faster and faster, but from what he could see from within the distance her gaze seemed somewhat worried and desperation was marring her features.

'Just what is her purpose in doing this?' Kuroko wondered to himself, however he had no time to think about the answer, and so he dismissed his thoughts and turned to look towards the intense battle that was happening in front of him with cautious eyes.

Kise and Midorima were moving fast while dodging and parrying the attacks Momoi had whipped out towards them. However Midorima then raised his speed as he prepares his arrow beams to shoot at the woman from various angles.

Momoi looked unperturbed at the attacks that were going to be thrown at her; instead she threw out a shield while shifting her position to avoid the main point of the concentrated arrow beams.

It was looking good for her as she dodged the attacks entirely, but what she didn't expect was for another set of arrow beams to shoot from directly behind where her shield didn't cover her.

Momoi turned her head at the attack with wide eyes, she knew it was coming but it was too late for her to move anywhere else or create a barrier to shield herself. She closed her eyes as she felt the impact of the beams hitting her shoulders and legs.

Momoi's body dropped and rolled on top of the ground as she shut her eyes tightly over the pain coursing through her wounded legs and shoulders. Even without seeing she knew that the damage inflicted was quite serious and won't be healing as fast as usual.

She still hadn't given up though. No, she wouldn't give up, she thought as she held the dagger tightly within her hands and brought it closer towards her body, determined to protect it even if it costed her own life in the process.

Kise and Midorima approached the fallen woman with caution in their steps. While they were glad that Momoi was now subdued, they also knew that the woman wouldn't give up so easily, it went against a demon's prideful nature to do so.

Momoi turned her eyes towards the both of them while glaring with an intensity that spoke of her strength and unbreakable will. She was not going to hand the dagger over to them and she would fight until the end to protect it.

Kise stopped short in his steps as he looked at her, his gaze brimming with regret and sorrow. Midorima stood next to him while observing the both of them with something akin to curiosity and wariness within his eyes. He didn't know what kind of past the two shared but if it would get in the way of their mission of securing the dagger then he would not hesitate to end her in Kise's place.

"Momo-cchi, please just give us the dagger, I don't want to have to do this to you." Kise said with warning and something akin to hesitation within his voice. Momoi only shook her head slightly with resolution and regret also marring her features.

Midorima only narrowed his eyes at their exchange, he had reached the limits of his patience as he then stepped forward and decided to end their prolonged fight.

"You're taking too long, I'm ending this battle." Midorima said as he aimed his hands out towards Momoi intent on finishing her off while Kuroko and Kise widened their eyes in shock.

Kuroko didn't want any murders happening within this mission, especially not caused by his familiars. Momoi didn't seem like a bad person, she must've had a reason as to why she would fight until the death to protect the gem. He was about to call out to Midorima to stop the latter from killing her when Kise beat him to it instead and yelled out from the top of his lungs while grabbing the green head's sleeves.

"No! Midorima-cchi! Please stop you don't have to kill her!" Midorima ignored the yells of desperation from the blond beside him and was about to aim for the final blow when he was disrupted by a blinding light which covered the entire room in a flash.

Everyone shielded their eyes in the process, waiting for the bright light to fade away. As they were about to lift their hands from their eyes, a cold shiver ran over their spines making them freeze for a moment while widening their eyes and causing forced gasps to leave their lips.

It wasn't like anything they had ever felt before; it was dreadful and suffocating and it seemed to wash over their entire beings, seeping into their very soul and drowning them in endless despair and hopelessness.

Kuroko then realized that Momoi's objective wasn't only to protect the dagger from them, she was also trying to protect them from the demon inside of it.

The new demonic presence that had entered the scene was very powerful and alarmingly dangerous. It made Midorima immediately fall back and to stand protectively in front of Kuroko's form, prioritizing his master's safety at the newest revelation.

Kagami who had been silently watching the scene in front of them with Himuro by his side immediately ran towards Kuroko's direction as well, intent on keeping the latter safe while also regrouping against the formidable threat has revealed itself to them.

Kise was paralysed, as he gazed at the figure standing between Momoi and him. Both of their eyes were widened with shock, disbelief and dread is written across Kise's features while Momoi's forlorn gaze was filled with sorrow and pain.

"I was wondering what all the noise was about out here." The blue haired stranger spoke first as he stood tall while looking around at their surroundings with curious eyes. Kise took a step forward as he faced the stranger while staring straight at his navy blue orbs with a hard gaze and a stiff smile forming on his lips.

"Aomine-cchi…" The blonde said to the other in a low and bitter tone that spoke of his chaotic feelings and thoughts at that moment. The tanned stranger shifted his gaze towards Kise and widened his eyes slightly in immediate recognition before his expression broke into a surprised smirk.

"Well, if it isn't Kise. It's been a while huh, so how long was I out for? Guessing from your appearance it has been a damn long time." The stranger named Aomine spoke in a low baritone with a hint of amusement tinged with sarcasm in his voice.

It was true though, Aomine's appearance and demeanour differed greatly from Kise's fashionable white dress shirt and grey trousers or Midorima's neat set of monochrome suit.

Instead Aomine was sporting a bare muscled torso with baggy white cotton pants which contrasted him from the rest of them. It was as if he had just came straight from some distant era in the past.

"It has been five hundred years, Aomine-kun." Momoi called out to the blue haired demon with familiarity and a somewhat nostalgic smile on her face as she got up from the floor. Her previous wounds were almost healed already, all that was left of it now was just traces of blood staining her lilac dress.

Aomine turned his head to face Momoi and slightly frowned when he saw her wounds before his gaze then hardened.

"Satsuki, who did that to you?" Aomine uttered the question with the same low baritone however his tone lost all of its earlier playfulness and became somewhat chilling and dangerous. Kise answered his question without blinking as he stared straight at the man in front of him.

"I did." He replied with challenging eyes and cold voice that almost matched the bluenet's own. Aomine turned to look towards the blonde at his response with a terrifying gaze that would make anyone else flinch and turn their tails if they valued their lives.

For a moment it seemed like they were on a silent stare down, intense gazes meeting each other's own while conveying emotions that were indecipherable to those who were watching. Aomine was the first one to break the silence as he then scoffed and smirked in response while staring at the blonde with a mocking gaze of his own.

"Heeeh, so you actually managed to hit Satsuki? Damn you must've improved quite a bit Kise, why don't you fight me instead? I need to warm up my muscles after all those years of sleeping." Aomine said while he cracked his neck and stretched his arm muscles just to prove his point as he then strode closer to face the blonde directly. His steps were light and lithe like a predator approaching a cornered prey. Kise didn't back down though as he met the other's gaze head on and stayed still on his spot.

"Don't take me lightly, Aomine-cchi." Kise's voice dropped an octave lower as he discarded any and all pretences while facing the other demon with a fierce and intense glare that spoke of his burning determination and fury. Aomine saw the other's gaze and widened his eyes before he broke out into a loud laughter.

"Hahaha, you're speaking as if you can actually win, did you really forget after all those years Kise? You couldn't manage to beat me even once in battle." Aomine smirked arrogantly as he stood in front of Kise levelling him with a gaze that seemed to be insulting the blonde in its own way. Kise ignored the latter's comment and narrowed his eyes in return as he spoke resolutely towards the other.

"I'm different now, I've got Kuroko-cchi and Midorima-cchi, besides I really don't feel like losing to you again, Aomine-cchi." He said while glancing fondly towards Kuroko's direction before turning to face the bluenet in front of him again. Aomine followed his gaze towards Kuroko and Midorima's direction.

Midorima frowned and narrowed his eyes as he stood protectively in front of Kuroko while obscuring him from the other's view. Aomine widened his eyes in return at the dawning realization of Kise's words before sounds of booming laughter filled the entire room making the bluenet's shoulders shake and hunch from the uncontrollable amusement he found within the situation.

"Bwahaha, you actually serve humans now? Oh my, that's quite the joke right there…" Aomine said as he settled down, wiping his eyes from tears of mirth at the revelation before his expression changed drastically as he stood tall once again while staring straight at Kise's amber eyes with an intense menacing glare in his darkened navy blue orbs. "Don't fuck around with me Kise, you'd even stoop so low as to serve a human, I'm disappointed in you."

His voice lowered as the demonic aura that surrounded him seemed to thicken considerably in return, causing Kuroko to softly gasp and Kagami to frown deeply while their familiars resumed a defensive stance intent on protecting their masters from the mysterious and dangerous demon named Aomine in front of them.

"Say what you want to say after you defeat me." Kise replied with a fiery gaze of his own while he stood still in his stance, ready for battle.

Momoi looked at the scene with desolate eyes before she closed them with resignation as she walked over to stand beside Aomine. Once she opened her eyes again they were cold and hard as stone, no traces of emotions or hesitations could be seen within her gaze. She was ready to support Aomine until the end.

Aomine gave a feral smirk as he started cracking his knuckles before approaching closer to all of them with slow and steady steps, his gaze burning with raging intensity as he prepared for battle.

"Oh, I'm going to have fun destroying all of you."

* * *

_A/N_: As some of you might notice, my update schedule got wayyyyy pushed back compared to my previous chapters. I sincerely apologise for this, I have no excuse for posting late other than having a writer's block and some other... distractions. Anyways, THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU READERS, FOLLOWERS, AND REVIEWERS OUT THERE I am honestly surprised that I have this many subscribers to my story now lol it's kinda like a wishful dream lol.

On another note I have some interesting reviews, one of them actually asked me what Kise and Midorima looked like in the previous chapters, I was like uhhh did I describe that? Oh shit, I didn't, well fuck I screwed up (so sorry to the anon who reviewed lol) so I made a quick description for them in this story and for Ahomine as well. I feel like I did a major screw up as an author lol I mean who the hell forgets to describe their own characters *shoots self*

Anyways I hope you enjoy this chapter and I hope you'll continue to support me and be patient through all of my swings and random moments. Thank you again for your support I hope you'll enjoy reading this story as much as I enjoy writing it and bringing it out to you.


	10. Do or Die

_Special Thanks to my wonderful beta and amazing friend _**Roselilia**_ for helping me edit this chapter and for having limitless patience and understanding in dealing with me and my mistakes, and also a huge thanks to all of you readers out there for your continuous support. I hope you'll enjoy reading this chapter as much as we enjoy bringing it out to you all._

* * *

**_Chapter 10 – Do or Die_**

Aomine and Kise stood still, facing each other without moving.

The atmosphere was thick and foreboding, everyone was waiting and anticipating for something to happen and it all came down to the two old acquaintances which were currently focused and intently gazing straight into each other's eyes.

Kise was the first one to move, immediately charging at Aomine with incredible speed, throwing a flurry of kicks and punches in the process. Aomine dodged them all easily and smoothly without any signs of being perturbed by the attacks, in fact his face was morphed into one of mocking boredom.

"Do you seriously think that you can actually beat me with these kinds of attacks?" He taunted the blond with a lazy smirk on his face as he continued to dodge and weave past the attacks the other was throwing at him.

Kise didn't look at all bothered by the fact that none of his attacks were hitting Aomine instead he continued to increase his speed as he threw out his fists and tried to land even more kicks at the bluenet.

Kuroko and Kagami looked on to the situation with an urgent expression on their faces. This didn't look good, the demon named Aomine was obviously too strong to be taken down by one person only, and so Kuroko turned to Midorima while levelling him with a serious gaze.

"Midorima-kun, please go help Kise-kun, I'll be fine with Kagami-kun and Himuro-kun." Kuroko said to his familiar who had only looked at Kuroko and nodded his affirmative.

While Midorima didn't want to leave Kuroko's side he also knew that the blue haired demon was very strong, even he wasn't sure if he could take the latter by himself. And so, after weighing his options Midorima immediately left and went to join the battle.

Meanwhile, Kuroko started thinking on his next actions regarding this predicament they had gotten into. Not only was there no backup available for the current mission, the gem itself turned out to be more powerful than anyone would've ever thought. The situation itself was now more precarious than they had ever imagined and no one knew whether they could get out of this alive.

Kuroko needed to think of another plan fast because while subduing the demon was their main option it was also in their best interest to have an alternative plan in case Kise and Midorima couldn't defeat the demon with mere strength.

It wasn't that Kuroko doubted his familiars' abilities but even from the distance he could tell that Aomine was something else entirely. He reeked of a sickeningly thick demonic aura that was enough to turn those with weak hearts to insanity. Aomine was probably one of the most powerful demons Kuroko had ever seen, if not the most powerful, and he was not so sure they can get away unscathed as they are now.

Kuroko's gaze turned towards the battle again and that was when he spotted something from the corner of his eye that made him immediately turn to Kagami and Himuro while whispering his next course of actions to the both of them.

"Kagami-kun, Himuro-kun, could I have your attention for a moment? I think I know what we have to do next." He said as he stared at Momoi's figure while aiming his gaze at a certain forgotten item that the pink haired demon was holding in her hands.

Momoi was standing near Aomine watching the battle with stone cold eyes, until she saw Midorima approaching Kise and Aomine's battle. She immediately turned to face the greenhead when Himuro blocked her path instead.

"I can't let you go there miss." He said in a pleasant tone as he faced the pink haired woman with an amiable smile on his face. Momoi widened her eyes at the sudden interference, however she smiled back in return and went into a battle ready stance instead as she faced the elegant demon in front of her.

"Oh my, it seems like I'll have to get through you first, don't I? Well then, let's get started shall we?" Momoi didn't even finish her sentence before she started forming light whips and aiming them in Himuro's direction, the male parrying with a shield just on time.

Kuroko had found an alternative plan that might save them all, now it all depends on whether Himuro could defeat Momoi and obtain the dagger where Aomine's gem is embedded in and maybe, just maybe, with Kagami's help, he can seal the demon back into his own soul stone again.

Right now, he could only hope that everything will not turn out worse than it already was.

* * *

Kise continuously charged at Aomine with an even greater speed, throwing punches, kicks and every type of physical attack he could think of while the latter only dodged and swerved around with a bored expression on his face.

Aomine was getting irritated by the constant similar attacks Kise was throwing at him. He knew the other wasn't giving it his all just yet, and somehow it made Aomine's blood boil with rage and impatience. And so, he decided to stop this farce of a battle and immediately landed a punch on Kise's stomach by throwing out his fist in a blinding speed.

Kise doubled over and coughed before he picked himself up again and faced the other with a menacing grin.

"I see that you're still as fast as ever." He said as he got up and faced Aomine, his eyes glowing ominously within the darkness of the room while Aomine stared right back with his own raging navy blue orbs.

"And you're just as weak as you've always been." The bluenet simply said to the blond with a scoff and an arrogant mocking smirk etched on his face. Kise narrowed his eyes with rage as he went to charge at Aomine again, but before he could throw out a punch, a light beam shot in Aomine's direction, which made Kise stop short in his tracks while avoiding the beam from hitting him as well.

Aomine had dodged the attack gracefully, his movements lithe and unperturbed by the sudden attack. Both amber and navy blue orbs turned towards the source of the attack to find Midorima silently walking towards them, his gaze fierce and deadly with a lethal aura surrounding his being.

Aomine narrowed his gaze and smirked savagely at the newcomer. The fight had just gotten more interesting, and he felt the adrenaline rushing through his veins as his senses started to sharpen at the knowledge that another worthy opponent had just joined the battle.

Kise silently looked at Midorima who had walked and went to stand beside him while muttering the words with an indifferent expression.

"I will also be your opponent in this battle." Midorima said to Aomine with a challenging gaze as he took off his left hand bandages and effectively removing the seal to his power.

Aomine widened his eyes as he started to laugh with obvious amusement and excitement within his voice.

"Hahaha, that's great, even better I can see that you're not half bad yourself. Now, let's quit this chit chat and show me what you've got." Aomine narrowed his eyes, his lips curled into an arrogant and almost vicious smirk. His intense gaze was feral and ruthless as it pierced both Kise and Midorima.

Kise fiercely scowled as he went into his battle stance again, while he was rather surprised by Midorima's appearance he knew that he would probably require the latter's assistance within this battle.

Aomine was not someone he could simply defeat with mere strength; the bluenet had an insane amount of power and not to mention he wasn't even showing his full abilities towards the both of them yet. He had barely even started attacking, all he had simply done was dodge and play around Kise's attacks, like a predator taunting its prey slowly but surely into its sharp and deadly clutches.

Midorima stayed silent and composed, choosing to dismiss the bluenet's words as he wasted no time at all and immediately shot his arrow beams at Aomine's direction with lightning fast speed. He knew he had to go full power from the start if he ever wanted to have a chance at defeating the demon in front of him.

Aomine dodged swiftly with incredible speed of his own while Kise charged at him straight after Midorima's beams had been shot. There was no rest between the consecutive attacks thrown at Aomine from Midorima's arrow beams to Kise's physical attacks.

While Kise knew he couldn't defeat Aomine with simple punches and kicks, he also knew that he needed to save his Perfect Copy ability for when he really needed it, and now was definitely not the safe time to use it just yet.

They continued battling in a similar manner, no one yielding or breaking from the sequence of offensive and defensive that had been established within their movements.

It was a lethal dance between the three of them, Midorima's graceful and poised form as he rained down countless arrow beams at the bluenet while Kise entered from between the barrages of the beams to move with fluidity and swiftness within his attacks, and then there was Aomine, his movements were erratic and indescribable as he dodged everything that was thrown at him. The battle was raging like a storm; unpredictable, treacherous and no one knew what's going to happen next.

It was a battle that would've lasted, that is, until Midorima shot an arrow beam at an angle that was hard to manoeuvre from. Aomine had been able to agilely dodge, however the arrow still managed to graze the corners of his jaw slightly, although it was barely enough to draw blood.

Aomine touched the corners of his jaw tentatively with slightly widened eyes, as if he was rather shocked that the beams had managed to hit him somehow. Midorima narrowed his gaze with slight discontent in his expression as he missed the target while Kise seemed rather shocked at the occurrence as much as Aomine was.

The wound had already healed as soon as it was drawn but Aomine could still feel it, and he couldn't help but grin with boiling excitement at the new development.

"I'll have to give it to you grass head, you're pretty damn good. What's your name?" He asked with an amused and curious tone. Midorima's eyebrows twitched at the nickname Aomine gave him although he didn't let that affect him and instead fixed his glasses while levelling the bluenet with a condescending glare.

"Hmph, it is to be expected, I, Midorima Shintarou will never let my opponents escape so easily." He said the words in his usual stern and apathetic tone, as if it was an obvious fact that the bluenet had overlooked. Aomine merely laughed at the greenhead's words before he landed his predatory gaze to the two opponents in front of him.

"Perfect, well then I guess I, Aomine Daiki, can actually play for a bit." Aomine drawled the words out almost mockingly as he stood up to his full height.

Everything about Aomine changed from then on; it was as if someone flipped a switch. His aura got thicker and darker, like a broken dam flooding the entire area, making it seem like his previous presence was nothing but a mere façade. His navy blue orbs glowed in the dark of the room and it gave an almost sinister appearance to his being.

Kise and Midorima both stood firm while changing their pose somewhat defensively. They knew now that this was the real Aomine Daiki, and he was alarmingly dangerous and possessed a power beyond limits.

Aomine approached them, walking with slow languid steps that seemed somewhat relaxed and unassuming. Midorima and Kise sharpened their senses even more, ready to fend and counter against any sudden motions. For a moment it seemed like time stood still, and then Aomine moved.

Light blades formed within his hands as he swerved and slashed them in Midorima and Kise's direction. He was fast, alarmingly so, and if Kise and Midorima weren't expecting the sudden attack they might not have moved in time to dodge the long and sharp blades.

Aomine's movements were powerful, instinctive and agile. He manoeuvred the blades like they were extensions of his limbs; every slash was brutal and lethal as they were nimble and swift.

Midorima used his shield to block the attacks while shooting light beams which were countered by Aomine easily using his twin light blades. Kise deemed that it was the right time to utilize his Perfect Copy of Midorima's light beams and shot at the bluenet with much intensity within his attacks while dodging and blocking Aomine's blades with his own shield.

The battle has been reversed now with Midorima and Kise mostly dodging and on the defensive while Aomine continuously swung and charged at them viciously with a fierce intent to kill.

Kise was rather worried by the current outcome because while he knew Aomine was serious in his attacks, he also knew that the bluenet still hadn't shown them all of his powers yet, and he didn't want to take the risk of anything worse happening. Kise needs to stop Aomine now.

Aomine was about to swing his blades down when Kise suddenly swerved around it and went inside Aomine's defensive range to create and aim a Perfect Copy of Midorima's clustered arrow beams at him. The bluenet widened his eyes in shock as he dodged and moved back a couple of steps to avoid Kise's concentrated attacks.

"Well Kise, I didn't expect you'd be able to move around that." Aomine smirked as he stared the blond down with a somewhat surprised and amused gaze. Kise merely frowned with a small scowl forming on his face while he pointed his finger at Aomine accusingly.

"Who do you think fought and lost to you every day on one on one in the past? I know you better than anyone else." The blond said with much certainty within his voice as he gazed at Aomine with a somewhat determined expression. Aomine merely smirked in return while nodding his head slightly at the words.

"I see." He said with delight within his deep voice before he swung his blades again and charged at Kise wasting no time at all.

The battle ensued between them both as Aomine charged at Kise with his full weight and power put into every slash while Kise continuously dodged and occasionally weaved past Aomine's attacks to shoot some of his own.

Midorima watched from a further distance while occasionally helping Kise out by shooting his arrow beams whenever the blond wasn't in a close enough range within the bluenet. He couldn't move as freely as he could when Kise was only using his Perfect Copy within a distance, now he had to watch out so that the blond didn't get hit by a stray shot.

Normally Midorima wouldn't have any problems in shooting with accuracy, it was his specialty after all, however with the speed Aomine and Kise was moving in at the moment it couldn't be ruled out as a possibility that one of his shots might hit the blond by accident, especially since the latter was so focused on fighting Aomine he might not even be aware of his surroundings anymore.

Midorima was quite annoyed by the fact, however if the blond was doing a good enough job on keeping Aomine at bay then so be it, he will do his own part in completing the mission as well.

Kise and Aomine continued battling each other with much passion within their attacks. They were somehow equal in their footing and strength and soon enough both had reached a standstill in their battle. Both of them were worked out from the intense fight, with Kise's breathing slightly ragged and heavier than Aomine who still looked like he had a lot of vigour within him.

Aomine chuckled hard while he wiped some of the sweat from his forehead.

"I see that you're still good at copying other people, but it's not enough if you want to stop me." He said with a mocking tone aimed at the blond within his words. Kise merely ignored the bluenet's words as he stood up again with a fierce intensity in his amber orbs.

"I've told you before, I'm different now." Kise said with a low threatening tone as he stared straight at the bluenet's orbs with severity within his gaze. Aomine laughed while he fixed the blond with an amused expression.

"Oh yes, that. If you can't win by yourself you'll fight me all at once, huh?" Aomine said with obvious ridicule within his voice before he continued in a more aggressive tone. "You've started thinking like the humans, Kise. You're putting me to sleep." He said as he levelled a glare the blond with intense rage beneath his navy blue orbs.

Kise scoffed and smirked as he gazed back at Aomine with a slight condescending look as if he couldn't believe what the bluenet had just said to him.

"Huh, I didn't mention anything like that." Kise said with a slight raise of his eyebrows as if the fact was utterly ridiculous to him. "I guess I've come to acknowledge their way of thinking, however, I don't care about what's right or wrong, right now I just want to defeat you." He continued with a sharp edge of conviction to his voice as he narrowed his eyes and took a step closer to Aomine while preparing his next move.

"I'm not mature enough to fight with reason over instinct." Kise said with a low growl as he fixed his stance and charged at Aomine with full speed while aiming countless arrow beams at the bluenet who immediately parried with his own set of light blades.

"Bring it on." Aomine said with feral excitement as he pushed the blond back with forceful strength channelled through the slash of his blades.

Kise charged at Aomine with incredible ferocity and swiftness within his attacks, shooting attack after attack at the bluenet while also attempting to land a couple of hits as soon as he got close enough within the bluenet's defensive range.

Aomine didn't look perturbed, instead he only savagely smirked while parrying and dodging the blond's vicious offense while retaliating back with the same intensity within his blades.

Midorima looked on at the battle with a deep frown on his face, the battle not looking good for them. While Kise was indeed pushing Aomine back, he was also losing his stamina the more he used his Perfect Copy against Aomine, and he was supposed to be well past his limits already.

Kise was losing control of himself within the battle, and that didn't bode well for any of them especially since Aomine definitely still had a massive amount of endurance to continue the battle.

Not to mention their attacks had done an outstanding damage to their entire surrounding since all of them had gone full power during the intense fight. The ship walls were wrecked and water had started to come out of certain deep cracks within the walls, it wasn't going to be fatal just yet but if they kept it up soon enough it would be.

Midorima was about to interfere with the continuous battle when Kise suddenly found an opening and swerved past Aomine's blades which had just been swung down to him to charge inside Aomine's range and caught the bluenet off guard.

Aomine widened his eyes as fists managed to ram against his face and abdomen rapidly. Kise continuously threw kicks and punches at the bluenet who haven't had enough time to dodge or block the streams of attacks. He did however manage to dissipate one of his light blades to throw a punch at Kise's gut and knock the blond off balance to give him some time in regaining his own senses.

Aomine wiped the blood of his battered nose and cut lip while he spat out the rest of it from his mouth. His smirk was rather impressed although his gaze told a different story entirely, his eyes were almost vengeful and wild as he gazed at the blonde who had gotten back up to his feet with fury within them.

Aomine wasted no time in charging at Kise, without bothering to recreate the discarded light blade, preferring to use the one he had right now, although he made it grow considerably larger in size.

He went berserk as he continuously barraged the blond with full strength assaults of his light blade with a speed that was beyond anything he had ever shown before. Kise had to be quick on his feet and sharpened his reflexes considerably to dodge and avoid the stream of attacks that was thrown at him, barely escaping the slashes thrown.

Midorima saw that the bluenet was enraged and Kise had nearly run out of his stamina to use his powers to its full strength. He knew that he needed to stop this battle right now if they wanted to have any chances in winning and so entered the scene of the battle again while standing close to the blond who had managed to fall back next to Midorima.

Midorima aimed his arrow beams with much more intensity, each beam shooting thicker and faster than before, while Aomine constantly dodged and parried with his sword. The greenhead continuously poured down unlimited concentrated arrows at the bluenet so that he had no choice but to stop and defend with a shield for a while as Midorima narrowed his eyes, sweating profusely due the massive power he is currently using.

Kise immediately saw the opportunity Midorima is giving him and went to subdue Aomine with all his might while charging at the bluenet with sheer willpower and force as he bolted off his feet to strike past Aomine's defense.

Aomine had definitely been taken aback by the blond's sudden lurch past his shield and into his defensive territory. Kise wasted no time going on offensive again as he went to attack Aomine with incredible speed.

For a moment it seemed like the battle had nearly been won with Aomine having nowhere else to go, Midorima raining arrow beams on the outside while Kise broke in and infiltrated inside his shield.

However as Kise threw his fist out to deal an enormous blow, Aomine scoffed and gazed at the blond with utter anticipation as if he had been expecting the move.

Kise widened his eyes as Aomine used his free hand to create a light blade within his palms while facing it out towards Kise as he accelerates towards the bluenet with no chance of blocking or stopping his movements.

"You said you know me better than anyone else. Didn't you think that it could also work the other way around?" Aomine asked, smirking with a feral grin as the blades protruded and shot out from his hands ready to impale the blond right through his body.

Time seemed to stop, as the unexpected then happened.

Blood splattered while screams broke out at the sound of a fallen body dropping still on the ground.

* * *

Kuroko watched from the sidelines while Kagami crouched right next to him, frowning deeply at the battles that are ensuing before them.

"Kuroko, what the fuck are we gonna do now?" Kagami asked while acting rather jittery at the fact that they were meant to sit still as they waited for the verdict of the battles before them. Kuroko frowned deeply as he stared straight at the situation on their hands.

"Kagami-kun, you know that we both can't really do anything at the moment without being a burden, I just hope Himuro-kun will be able to get that dagger on time." Kuroko said with urgency and unrest within his gaze and voice.

Honestly, he felt the same way and could understand Kagami's unease at the current predicament. It was their duty to contain the threat on board and right now they weren't even sure whether they could succeed in this mission. Not only was Aomine's strength and power beyond anyone's expectations, they also had another problem on their hands.

Momoi Satsuki proved to be quite the tough opponent to defeat and Himuro was already using massive effort to block her rapid whips of light tendrils.

So far, Himuro had been on the defensive creating shields and dodging whenever necessary to avoid her attacks. However Momoi wasn't perturbed, as she kept lashing her light whips at Himuro waiting for the moment when he would finally run out of stamina and break his defense.

Kagami looked restless as he watched the battle between his familiar and Momoi Satsuki, wishing he could do something even though he knew he couldn't at the moment.

"Shit!" Kagami swore under his breath. While he trusted Himuro to be able to take care of the job he was also worried that they wouldn't make it on time with the current condition.

Kuroko looked back and forth between the two ensuing battles while thinking of anything that he could do to help them out, so far finding no solutions to the problems at hand.

Himuro shielded yet another attack from Momoi while stepping a couple of steps back to create a better distance to dodge and parry her whip lashes on time.

Momoi's gaze was serious and deadly as she took slow steps to close in on Himuro while preparing for another attack at him.

"You aren't bad at all, but… if you want to stop me you'll have to do better than that." Momoi said with a light airy tone that contrasted with her cold and hard gaze as she stared at Himuro like a cornered prey. Himuro merely laughed lightly, his smile never faltering even as he stared straight into Momoi's gaze with his own contrast of intense fiery orbs.

"Well then, I guess I have to step up my game don't I?" Himuro said as he took a deep breath and narrowed his gaze towards Momoi. The pink haired demon widened her eyes with shock at the sudden change in Himuro's demeanour, his aura somehow getting colder and she could feel her spine tingling as her senses picked up an elusive threat and danger coming from the demon in front of her.

Momoi halted and stood still, ready to predict and defend against any sudden attacks or offensive measures the male might make against her. Himuro took a deep breath before he lurched forward, spheres of light leaving his palms and heading in her direction.

Momoi immediately went to dodge and avoid the attack before it hit her, moving away from the aimed course of the clustered balls of light and turned her head towards him to smile triumphantly.

"Oops, you missed." Momoi said with a slight twinkle of amusement and mockery within her gaze. Himuro didn't change his expression before he smiled and stared at her with expectation within his grey orbs.

"Sorry miss, I was really going for what's after that." Himuro said and Momoi widened her gaze with realization when the spheres of light suddenly formed in front of her vision and hit her square in her legs and shoulders.

The attack had hit her in the same spot where Kise had inflicted her earlier wounds, making the blow greater than it would've been if it had hit any other parts of her body. She cringed with slight pain as she took a couple of steps back, steadying herself from the impact of the attack.

Himuro's spheres of light hit hard but it wasn't as fast or strong enough to penetrate her flesh as Midorima's arrow beams could. It was like the impact of getting hit by a truck, which for demons wasn't all that bad considering they could stand a lot more damage than humans could.

Momoi didn't even look down at her grazed wounds which had already started healing by the time she had regained her composure and balance. She smiled a little in acknowledgement at the opponent in front of her as she gazed straight at him with slight curiosity.

"That wasn't bad at all, didn't think you would have another one coming right after." Momoi spoke as she prepared her stance for defense. Himuro slowly approached her with an innocent smile while readying another attack.

"Oh? But that was the only attack I've thrown at you, there was never any other attack." Himuro said lightly with an amiable expression on his face as he shot beam after beam of light spheres at her.

'What's going on? I thought I'd already predicted his attack course.' Momoi thought with slight alarm as she tried to locate where Himuro's light spheres would hit her. She decided to erect a barrier to avoid them this time as she tried to decipher the trick behind the attacks.

The spheres were proven to be elusive though, it was as if there was no point in trying to predict them in the first place. The attack hit where Momoi had foreseen, however it still phased through her shield even when she was sure she had timed it perfectly to block the incoming spheres.

Momoi was now fully panicked as she furiously lashes out flurry of light whips at Himuro, trying to get him to stay on defensive without having any chance to use his mysterious light spheres that could elude her defense and made it seem as if she was only blocking thin air in the first place.

'Wait… thin air?' Momoi's eyes widened in slight shock as she finally realized the true nature behind Himuro's attacks. She halted in her movements giving Himuro an opening as she stared straight at his grey orbs with intense fire within her gaze.

Himuro didn't waste the chance and immediately seized the opportunity to shoot his spheres of light at the woman who already entered into a defensive stance ready to block the attack.

Momoi didn't move or budge an inch from her place and Himuro widened his eyes as he saw the resolute and fierce gaze the other was giving him.

"You're not getting past me with that illusion of yours anymore!" She exclaimed as she let the sphere of lights inside defensive range before setting up her shield afterwards.

Kagami and Kuroko widened their eyes as they stared at the battle with intense concentration and worry within their gazes.

"Shit, she figured it out!" Kagami hissed under his breath as he clenched his fists tightly while Kuroko visibly frowned at the outcome of the current situation as they watched with bated breaths.

They knew that Himuro's true offense mainly relied on his ability to fake and create illusionary copies of his own attacks, misleading the opponent and throwing them off their balance while the real attack hit them afterwards. However once the trick was revealed it became much easier for the opponent to retaliate and time their own defense according to Himuro's attack patterns.

Momoi's precognition and analytical powers gave her the ability to adjust much faster to Himuro's timed attacks as soon as she knew the trick behind it. She was sure that this time she could block Himuro's spheres and render him useless.

However Himuro immediately gave her a knowing smile as soon as she set up her shield, his eyes were filled with expectation and recognition as he whispered the next words.

"I know that you know the trick behind the Mirage Shot, however, I can make my attacks anytime I want, including at the same time with my illusions." Momoi's gaze widened as the spheres hits her hard, the impact throwing her backwards and making her body roll across the ground.

Her body was battered and wounded due to the various assaults she had received from her earlier battles with Kise, Midorima and Himuro's previous attacks. However the first thing she noticed was that her left hand was currently empty, the item she was grasping onto tightly released due to the force of the spheres hitting her.

Momoi looked up in a panic and widened her eyes as she saw Himuro lurched past her vision to grab at the item lying across on top of the ground before he immediately threw it over towards the opposite of the room where Kagami and Kuroko were standing while reaching their hands out expectantly, ready to catch the item.

"The dagger, catch!" Himuro yelled at them as the dagger flew from his hands and straight into Kagami's awaiting ones.

Kagami gripped the dagger tightly as he quickly muttered a couple of incantations to put up a strong barrier over their heads while they focused on performing the sealing ritual over the gem.

Momoi immediately got up and rushed over towards Kagami and Kuroko but Himuro suddenly stepped in front of her and immediately shot his spheres at her.

"Your opponent is me! Don't think you can get past me easily!" Himuro bellowed as Momoi dodged and blocked the spheres before throwing him a menacing glare while lashing her whips at him much more viciously than ever.

"Move! I have no time for the likes of you!" Momoi furiously yelled as she diverted her attention between him and where the dagger is.

She was careless in letting her guard down and getting distracted by Himuro's provocation without realising that his true intent was to take the dagger from the start.

Momoi desperately lashed out with all of her power at Himuro as she fought to defeat him with force. She needed to get that dagger back safely no matter what, and she would do anything in her power to take it back even if it meant eliminating anyone that got in her way.

Himuro's sharp senses were alert when he saw Momoi's ferocious gaze and immediately knew that he was in a precarious position. Momoi's sudden outburst of escalating offense revealed that she had nothing else to lose and she would fight for the dagger until the end with no more reservations.

Meanwhile, once Kagami was finished with his incantations for the barrier he immediately sat down cross legged on the floor while placing the dagger on his upraised palms, taking deep breaths and concentrating on focusing his spiritual energies for the ritual.

Kuroko followed suit as he sat down opposite of Kagami, raising his hands to place them on top of Kagami's hands over the dagger while he met Kagami's eyes in a calming gaze.

"Kagami-kun, I will help you with the sealing ritual. We will do this together." Kuroko simply said as he gave Kagami a soft reassuring smile to which Kagami returned with gratitude as the pressure on him to succeed seemed to be lightened a bit.

"Thanks Kuroko." Kagami whispered before he closed his eyes and opened them again with determination and seriousness within his garnet orbs as nodded at Kuroko, signalling his set preparation, ready in starting the ritual.

Kuroko simply nodded back in return as Kagami started muttering lines of incantations clearly, rolling them off his tongue by memory while Kuroko followed suit muttering the same words of incantations, his voice overlapping with Kagami's and so forth.

Rituals performed by two or more people usually had a stronger effect and power since there were more spiritual energies to harness from, however it also carries a greater burden and risk for those participating. The people involved in the process needed to be in sync with one another in both their spiritual energies and their state of mind in order for the ritual to succeed.

Which was why the more people there were in a ritual the greater the risk of failure would be, and the consequences of a failed ritual would increase in severity with the more spiritual energies that were invested in it.

Kagami and Kuroko weren't worried though, they knew each other well enough since they started out training as exorcists and had enough practice in working together as it is.

Everything came naturally to them, both their emotions fell in perfect sync with each other as they continued the ritual, paying attention solely to their inner conscious as they concentrated on channelling their spiritual energies into sealing the dagger.

While it was hard, it was also a necessity for them to ignore their surroundings, including the loud battle explosions that came from around them. Kagami fully trusted in Himuro's ability to keep Momoi at bay while they were attending to the ritual. However the burden on Kuroko's thoughts was slightly greater with both of his familiars currently facing the most dangerous threat on board.

Kuroko and Kagami widened their eyes and jolted when they felt the demonic aura coming from the dagger suddenly spiked and intensified in return. The blue sapphire encrusted at the hilt glowed within their joined palms. Aomine's rage and vicious intent was revealed through the suffocating aura emanating from his soul stone, and it made Kuroko turn his head towards the battle happening not too far away from them.

The auction room was already a wreck with the walls showing cracks and holes visible enough even within the darkness of the place. Water was starting to leak out in a concerning amount from one of the large holes caused by the battle with Aomine.

Kuroko's eyes immediately went to his familiars who were currently clashing against Aomine in an intense and fiery battle that was happening before them.

Midorima's movements were swift as he watched over the fight with vigilant eyes, ready for any sudden motions required in defending himself or taking a shot at the opponent whenever he saw the opportunity to do so.

Kise however seemed to be distracted and Kuroko had noticed the difference in his actions. While his speed and power were no less than what he usually exhibited, his movements were rather distracted as he focused solely on attacking Aomine ignoring everything else including his surroundings.

It was as if the blond was losing control over himself as he blitzed into Aomine's defensive space and broke past the latter's shield with fierce and volatile movements.

Kuroko and Kagami had been shocked by the sudden burst of demonic aura from the dagger but they didn't break the spell, continuing to mutter incantations for the sealing ritual.

Kagami focused back onto channelling more of his energy onto the dagger while going through word after word with much more concentration than before, intent on finishing this ritual and sealing Aomine forever from the world.

Kuroko's lips followed Kagami's pace in speaking the same incantations to finish the ritual while cerulean orbs kept close watch of the battle. Kuroko was about to turn his gaze back and focus on sealing Aomine when he noticed something in between the rays of light from Midorima's arrow beams.

Kuroko didn't hesitate as he abruptly rose up from his sitting position, breaking the ritual in the process and immediately rushes out past the barrier that Kagami had made for them.

Kagami looked on with wide eyes, shocked at Kuroko's sudden movements as he tried to get up and follow the latter only to stagger back down as the effects of the failed sealing ritual took its toll on him, draining twice the amount of energy he had put into sealing the dagger.

Kuroko nearly fell from the impact of the broken ritual, most of his spiritual energy being sapped out of him but he did not stop moving forward. His feet running as fast as he could towards the only thing he saw in his eyes then.

Everything seemed to happen in slow motion as Kuroko ran past anything else that is happening around him, ignoring the consequences of his actions. Right now, all he could see was yellow as he widened his eyes and lurched forward into the centre of the battle.

His arms reaching out as he pushed Kise away with all his strength and took his place in receiving the blow of Aomine's blade as it was discharged out from the latter's palms.

Aomine's navy blue eyes widened at the last second, as he met Kuroko's cerulean orbs, shock overtaking his features. However what had shocked him wasn't the latter's unexpected entrance into the battle, instead it was the fact that Aomine had found no fear within the human's orbs. No, the only thing he could see was relief flooding within those eyes as the blade protruded and pierced through the small body.

Kuroko cringed as he felt the blade slash through him, pain shooting throughout his body as he fell down on the floor. Adrenaline dissipated from his system as his heartbeat slowed down to a dangerously stagnant pace. Blood was splattered, slowly coming out and soaking in through the carpet.

Kuroko felt himself grow weaker with every second that passed as energy was slowly drained out of him, life slipping away from the feeble grasps of his frail and wounded body. His senses were dulled as the pain gradually faded away, leaving him to feel, hear and see nothing.

Cerulean orbs slowly came to a close as he welcomed the darkness that reached out and overtook his consciousness, drowning him into the empty oblivion.

* * *

A/N: First of all THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONTINUOUS SUPPORT FOR THIS STORY OF MINE, I still cannot say enough about this, your reviews, constructive criticisms, follows, and favorites had really helped me through writing this chapter and progressing in the story and improving as an author in general. So thank you to all of you readers out there.

Second of all, NO I AM NOT GOING ON HIATUS OR TAKING A BREAK ON THIS STORY OR WHATEVER, yes I know I haven't updated in like... bout almost 3 weeks now? but I do have a reason! The neverending blackhole of a vortex called real-life had sucked me into it's deadly cycle and I seriously had a hard time trying to catch a break and actually write a sentence without being interrupted. Like seriously, plus my parents are here now (if any of you bothered to read my previous long ass author's note I did say my parents live overseas so I only get to see them once a year or so) so yeah there's that.

Third of all, I'm pretty sure some of you noticed my pen name change (prolly thinking, who the fuck is this avocado grenade and why did I subscribe to this unknown thing) anyways I had a funny story to share about that... Roselilia (my beta and friend) and I did an AkaKuro RP a while back and we decided to do the demon hunter setting lol but the point is Akashi (RP by her) is a psychotic paranoid freak who has OCD with hiding weapons in his house, and Kuroko (being the unlucky fuck he is, RP by me) was stuck with his antiques of hiding shit in his house, one scene had Akashi hiding grenades in his fruit bowl and Kuroko nearly killed himself while he thought of it as avocados and was about to be a good waifu and chop that shit for making some sorta dinner I can't be fucked to look up recipes for. Long story short it was quite funny especially when I made Kuroko so mad he nearly chopped Akashi's head off with an axe (another story for another time)

Fourth part (If any of you's still with me) this chapter took me really long because I was struggling with a certain part, surprisingly enough it wasn't Aomine or Kise's fight, it was the second part where Himuro fought Momoi, as you all have read (I hope you did I don't wanna spoil anything here) Himuro's power consist of spheres, well that wasn't exactly the first word choice I had used lol, I used BALLS instead, because my sleep deprived retarded mind plus lack of vocab choices thought 'huh, what word shall I use to describe this round thing that Himuro can shoot out, oh balls' well I typed about 2 paragraphs and it seemed odd,... like balls... my mind was starting to play images at this point but I thought it was just me and my dirty mind, anyways this goes on and I seriously cannot write by the time I started typing the sixth 'balls' sentence (bout 5 days later) I knew there was something wrong with this and I just... I needed help... so I asked Roselilia for her advice. I was like, hey can you just read this one sentence for me, does it sound weird? and so I sent it and she paused for like 2 seconds before she burst out laughing and went OMG, so then I knew that it wasn't just my dirty mind playing tricks on me and there is something absolutely wrong with that sentence. She immediately yelled at me in chat and said 'USE SPHERES WOMAN! SPHERES!' so I changed it and voila! my writing isn't stuck anymore and suddenly the chapter looks just right lol. But, Roselilia won't let me off it lol, it was too much... TOO MUCH I TELL YOU! LOL

But yeah... I'm sorry you all had to deal with delays because of my... stupidity and all. Anyways thank you for reading and I hope you'll look forward for the next chapter lol


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